A cardboard box lifting and turning machine

Abstract

This invention provides a carton lifting and turning machine, including a low-level infeed conveyor and a high-level outfeed conveyor. The key feature is the presence of a lifting and turning machine between the two conveyors. This machine includes a support frame consisting of a horizontal base and an upper vertical frame. Multiple lifting frames are mounted on the support frame, along with a drive mechanism for lifting and turning the lifting frames, and a first and second annular guide rails for guiding the lifting frames along these mechanisms. The machine conveniently lifts and turns cartons from the low-level infeed conveyor before sending them out via the high-level outfeed conveyor, achieving both continuous vertical lifting and a 90° rotation of the cartons. It features a simple structure, flexible, reliable, and stable lifting and turning operation, and a small footprint, making it ideal for applications requiring both high-level lifting and 90° rotation of cartons.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to lifting and turning equipment for articles, specifically a carton lifting and turning machine, belonging to the field of lifting and turning equipment design and manufacturing technology. Background Technology

[0002] In industrial production, many products or materials are packaged in cardboard boxes before warehousing. These are typically stored by stacking them on pallets and transferring them to shelves or automated warehouses. When palletizing cardboard boxes, some sizes require repositioning to improve stability and maximize space utilization. For example, tobacco companies have specific requirements for the palletizing method of cigarette packaging boxes. Chinese Patent 202022845704.2 discloses a cigarette packaging box flipping device that achieves a 90° flip. However, when automatically stacking cigarette packaging boxes, a dedicated lifting machine is required, increasing both equipment investment costs and space requirements. Therefore, a superior cardboard box flipping device with lifting capabilities is needed. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of this invention is to provide a flexible, reliable, and stable carton lifting and turning machine.

[0004] This invention is achieved through the following technical solution: a carton lifting and turning machine, comprising a low-level infeed conveyor and a high-level outfeed conveyor, characterized in that a lifting and turning machine is provided between the low-level infeed conveyor and the high-level outfeed conveyor, the lifting and turning machine comprising a support frame composed of a horizontal base frame and an upright frame thereon, a plurality of lifting frames provided on the support frame, a drive mechanism for lifting and turning the plurality of lifting frames, and a first annular guide rail and a second annular guide rail for lifting and turning the plurality of lifting frames along the lifting and turning mechanism, so that the cartons sent by the low-level infeed conveyor are lifted and turned by the lifting and turning machine and then sent out by the high-level outfeed conveyor.

[0005] The drive mechanism includes a drive shaft located at the top of the frame and a driven shaft located at the bottom of the frame. The two ends of the drive shaft are fixed to the top of the frame via bearings with mounting seats, and each end of the drive shaft has a corresponding drive sprocket. One end of the drive shaft extends outward and is connected to the power unit. The two ends of the driven shaft are fixed to sliding bearing seats via bearings with mounting seats. The sliding seats are fixed to a screw rod with a nut on the sliding seats. The screw rod is threaded to the inner wall of a sleeve fixed at the bottom of the frame, and each end of the driven shaft has a corresponding driven sprocket. The drive sprocket and the driven sprocket at the same end are connected to the corresponding chain. This allows the chain to move synchronously up and down in a cyclic motion under the drive of the power unit, through the drive shaft and the drive sprockets at both ends, and the driven shaft and the driven sprockets at both ends. As needed, the nut can be rotated to cause the screw rod to move the sliding seat, the bearings with mounting seats, the driven shaft and the driven sprockets at both ends up or down, thereby tensioning the chain.

[0006] Two first annular guide rails are provided, which are fixed longitudinally to the front and rear sides of the support frame respectively. The upper and lower ends of each first annular guide rail are U-shaped segments, and the middle is two parallel straight segments. A through first wheel groove is provided on the inner side of the two first annular guide rails.

[0007] The second annular guide rail is set as one, which is longitudinally fixed in the middle of the support frame. The upper end of the second annular guide rail is a small U-shaped segment, the lower end is a large U-shaped segment, the middle part on the box-entry side is a straight segment, the middle part on the box-exit side is an oblique segment at the top and a lower straight segment at the bottom, and a through second wheel groove is set on one or both sides of the second annular guide rail.

[0008] The multiple lifting frames are spaced apart on corresponding two chains. Each lifting frame includes a connecting rod at both ends connected to the corresponding chain by a hinge mechanism. Each connecting rod has a U-shaped fork at both ends, a protrusion in the middle of the inner side, two lifting rollers spaced apart on the outer side, and two lifting rods perpendicular to it spaced apart on the top side.

[0009] The hinge mechanism includes a second guide wheel connected to the protrusion via a central pivot shaft, and triangular plates respectively disposed in the U-shaped forks at both ends of the connecting rod. The first through hole of each triangular plate is hinged to the U-shaped fork via a side pivot shaft, and the second and third through holes are connected to the chain via a hinge shaft. The outer end of each side pivot shaft is connected to a first guide wheel. The two first guide wheels are respectively rolledly connected to the first wheel grooves on the corresponding first annular guide rails installed on the front and rear sides of the support frame, and are restricted by the first wheel grooves to only roll and will not come off.

[0010] The second guide wheel is rolledly connected to the second wheel groove corresponding to the second annular guide rail installed in the middle of the support frame, and is restricted by the second wheel groove to only roll and will not come off.

[0011] It not only solves the problem of instability of carton during lifting and flipping caused by chain disturbance, but also provides angle compensation when the lifting frame turns at the drive sprocket and driven sprocket;

[0012] So that multiple lifting frames spaced apart on the chain can complete the lifting and flipping along the first circular guide rail, while ensuring that the carton is flipped to 90° and then supported by the lifting rollers and connected to the carton conveyor before entering the carton conveyor, the connecting rod and the lifting rod on it remain upright when passing the top of the second circular guide rail and the small U-shaped section on the carton side, and gradually change from upright to inclined to a higher outer and lower inner position when entering the inclined section on the upper part of the carton side, and finally to a horizontal position, thereby avoiding interference from the carton and the carton conveyor and moving smoothly downward.

[0013] The infeed conveyor and the outfeed conveyor, and the conveying surface near the lifting and turning machine, are respectively provided with multiple corresponding through slots. The corresponding lifting rods pass through the multiple through slots as they move with the chain, and lift the carton on them when they pass through the two through slots of the infeed conveyor.

[0014] The present invention has the following advantages and effects: By adopting the above technical solution, after the carton enters the carton infeed conveyor, the lifting frame of the lifting and flipping machine can lift the carton vertically and flip it to 90°, so that the carton is moved to the conveying surface of the carton outfeed conveyor and sent to the next process. At this time, the lifting frame gradually transitions from an upright state to an inclined state with the outside higher and the inside lower, and then returns to a flat state, thereby avoiding interference from the carton and the carton outfeed conveyor and moving downward smoothly. In this way, multiple cartons are lifted, flipped and sent out, and then the next round of lifting, flipping and sending out of multiple cartons is carried out. Not only is the structure simple and the footprint small, but it is also flexible, reliable and stable in lifting and flipping, which is very suitable for applications where the carton needs to be lifted at a height and flipped at 90°. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 This is the front view of the present invention;

[0016] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Top view;

[0017] Figure 3 for Figure 1 A partial view;

[0018] Figure 4 for Figure 3 The right view;

[0019] Figure 5 for Figure 3 Top view;

[0020] Figure 6 for Figure 5 Enlarged view of a specific area;

[0021] Figure 7 for Figure 5 Top-view axonometric view of the connecting rod;

[0022] Figure 8 for Figure 5 Axial view of the connecting rod in the middle (top view);

[0023] Figure 9 for Figure 3 Enlarged view of part A;

[0024] Figure 10 for Figure 3 Enlarged view of part B;

[0025] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the first annular guide rail;

[0026] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of the second annular guide rail;

[0027] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of the flipping process. Implementation

[0028] The present invention will now be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0029] The carton lifting and turning machine provided by the present invention includes a low-level infeed conveyor 1 and a high-level outfeed conveyor 3, and a lifting and turning machine 2 is provided between the low-level infeed conveyor 1 and the high-level outfeed conveyor 3.

[0030] The lifting and tilting machine 2 includes a support frame 21 consisting of a horizontal base frame 211 and an upright frame 212 thereon. Multiple lifting frames 22 are mounted on the upright frame 212 of the support frame 21. A drive mechanism 23 enables the multiple lifting frames 22 to complete lifting and tilting. A first annular guide rail 24 and a second annular guide rail 25 are used to enable the multiple lifting frames 22 to lift and tilt along the mechanism.

[0031] The drive mechanism 23 includes an active shaft 231 set on the top of the support frame 21 and a passive shaft 235 at the bottom of the support frame 212. The two ends of the active shaft 231 are fixed to the top of the support frame 212 by bearings with seats, and the two ends of the active shaft 231 are respectively provided with corresponding active sprockets 232. The front end of the active shaft 231 extends outward and is connected to the power unit 239. The two ends of the passive shaft 235 are fixed to the sliding seat 237 by bearings with seats 236. The sliding seat 237 is fixed to the screw 238 with a nut on it. The screw 238 is threaded to the inner wall of the sleeve fixed at the bottom of the support frame 212. The two ends of the passive shaft 235 are respectively provided with corresponding passive sprockets 234. The active sprockets 231 and passive sprockets 235 at the same end are connected to the corresponding chains 233.

[0032] So that under the drive of the power unit 239, the chain 233 can be driven to move up and down synchronously through the drive shaft 231 and the drive sprockets 232 at both ends, the driven shaft 235 and the driven sprockets 234 at both ends; and as needed, the nut can be rotated to make the screw 238 drive the sliding seat 237, the seated bearing 236, the driven shaft 235 and the driven sprockets 234 at both ends to move up or down, thereby tensioning the chain 233;

[0033] Two first annular guide rails 24 are provided, which are respectively fixed longitudinally to the front and rear sides of the support frame 21 and the upright 212. The upper and lower ends of each first annular guide rail 24 are U-shaped segments, and the middle is two parallel straight segments. A through first wheel groove 241 is provided on the inner side of the two first annular guide rails 24.

[0034] The second annular guide rail 25 is set as one, which is longitudinally fixed in the middle of the support frame 21 and the upright 212. The upper end of the second annular guide rail 25 is a small U-shaped segment 252, the lower end is a large U-shaped segment 255, the middle part located on the box inlet side is a straight segment 251, the middle part located on the box outlet side is an oblique segment 253 at the top and a lower straight segment 254 at the bottom, and a through second wheel groove 256 is provided on the rear side of the second annular guide rail 25.

[0035] The multiple lifting frames 22 are spaced apart on the corresponding two chains 233. Each lifting frame 22 includes a connecting rod 221 whose two ends are connected to the corresponding chain 233 by a hinge mechanism. The connecting rod 221 has a U-shaped fork 223 at both ends, a protrusion 227 in the middle of the inner side, two lifting rollers 229 spaced apart on the outer side, and two lifting rods 222 perpendicular to it spaced apart on the top side.

[0036] The hinge mechanism includes a second guide wheel 228 connected to the protrusion 227 via a central pivot 220, and triangular plates 226 respectively disposed in the U-shaped forks 223 at both ends of the connecting rod 221. The first through hole of each triangular plate 226 is hinged to the U-shaped fork 223 via a side pivot 224, and the second and third through holes are connected to the chain 233 via hinge pins. The outer end of each side pivot 224 is connected to a first guide wheel 225. The two first guide wheels 225 are respectively rolledly connected to the first wheel grooves 241 on the first annular guide rails 24 corresponding to the front and rear sides of the support frame 21 upright 212, and are restricted by the first wheel grooves 241 to only roll and will not come off.

[0037] The second guide wheel 228 is rolledly connected to the second wheel groove 251 corresponding to the second annular guide rail 25 installed in the middle of the support frame 21 upright 212, and is restricted by the second wheel groove 251 to only roll and will not come off.

[0038] This not only solves the problem of instability of the carton during the lifting and flipping process caused by the disturbance of the chain 233, but also provides angle compensation for the lifting frame 22 when it turns at the drive sprocket 132 and the driven sprocket 234;

[0039] So that multiple lifting frames 22 spaced along the chain 233 can lift and rotate along the first annular guide rail 24, ensuring that the carton is lifted to 90° and then supported by the lifting roller 229 and connected to the carton conveyor 3 before entering the carton conveyor 3. The connecting rod 221 and its lifting rods 222 remain upright when passing the top of the second annular guide rail 25 and the small U-shaped section 252 on the carton exit side. As they enter the inclined section 253 at the top of the carton exit side, they gradually change from upright to an inclined position (higher on the outside, lower on the inside), and finally to a horizontal position, thus avoiding interference from the carton and the carton conveyor 3 and moving smoothly downwards. Figure 1 and Figure 11 ;

[0040] The infeed conveyor 1 and the outfeed conveyor 3, respectively, have two corresponding through slots 11 and 31 on their conveyor surfaces near the lifting and turning machine 2. The corresponding lifting rods 222 pass through these through slots 11 and 31 as they move with the chain 233, and lift the cartons on them as they pass through the two through slots 11 of the infeed conveyor 1. Figure 2 ;

[0041] The work process is as follows:

[0042] 1) The carton moves with the carton conveyor 1 to the working surface equipped with two through slots 11;

[0043] 2) Driven by the power unit 239, the chain 233 is driven to move up and down synchronously through the drive shaft 231 and its two ends of the drive sprocket 232, the driven shaft 235 and its two ends of the driven sprocket 234, and the chain 233 moves along the first annular guide rail 24.

[0044] 3) When the two lifting rods 222 of the lifting frame 22 move to the two through slots 11 on the working surface of the box conveyor 1, the horizontally placed carton is lifted away from the box conveyor 1 and vertically lifted by the chain 233 during the process of passing through the corresponding two through slots 11 from bottom to top.

[0045] 4) When the lifting frame 22 horizontally lifts the carton into the top, that is, after changing from a horizontal state to an upright state, the upright carton is supported by the lifting roller 229 and connected to the carton delivery conveyor 3, so that the two lifting rods 222 of the lifting frame 22 are separated from the upright carton.

[0046] 5) As the chain 233 moves, the connecting rod 221 and its lifting rod 222 remain upright when passing the top of the second annular guide rail 25 and the small U-shaped section 252 on the box exit side. When entering the inclined section 253 on the upper part of the box exit side, it gradually changes from upright to inclined with the outside higher and the inside lower, and finally flattens out to a horizontal position, thus avoiding interference from the carton and the box exit conveyor 3 and moving smoothly downward. It continues to descend vertically with the chain 233, thus completing the lifting, flipping and sending out of multiple cartons. Then, the next round of lifting, flipping and sending out of multiple cartons is carried out.

Claims

1. A carton lifting and turning machine, comprising a low-level infeed conveyor and a high-level outfeed conveyor, characterized in that... A lifting and turning machine is provided between the low-level box inlet conveyor and the high-level box outlet conveyor. The lifting and turning machine includes a support frame consisting of a horizontal base frame and an upright frame thereon, multiple lifting frames are provided on the support frame, a drive mechanism for the multiple lifting frames to complete lifting and turning, and a first annular guide rail and a second annular guide rail for the multiple lifting frames to lift and turn along it. The drive mechanism includes a drive shaft located at the top of the frame and a driven shaft located at the bottom of the frame. The drive shaft has corresponding drive sprockets at both ends, and the driven shaft has corresponding driven sprockets at both ends. The drive sprockets and driven sprockets at the same end are connected to the corresponding chains. Two first annular guide rails are provided, which are fixed longitudinally to the front and rear sides of the support frame respectively. The upper and lower ends of each first annular guide rail are U-shaped segments, and the middle is two parallel straight segments. A through first wheel groove is provided on the inner side of the two first annular guide rails. The second annular guide rail is set as one, which is longitudinally fixed in the middle of the support frame. The upper end of the second annular guide rail is a small U-shaped segment, the lower end is a large U-shaped segment, the middle part on the box-in side is a straight segment, the middle part on the box-out side is an inclined segment at the top and a lower straight segment at the bottom, and a through second wheel groove is set on one or both sides of the second annular guide rail. The multiple lifting frames are spaced apart on corresponding two chains. Each lifting frame includes a connecting rod whose two ends are connected to the corresponding chain by a hinge mechanism. The connecting rod has a U-shaped fork at both ends, a protrusion in the middle of the inner side, two lifting rollers spaced apart on the outer side, and two lifting rods perpendicular to it spaced apart on the top side. The hinge mechanism includes a second guide wheel connected to the protrusion via a central pivot shaft, and triangular plates respectively disposed in the U-shaped forks at both ends of the connecting rod. The first through hole of each triangular plate is hinged to the U-shaped fork via a side pivot shaft, and the second and third through holes are connected to the chain via a hinge shaft. The outer end of each side pivot shaft is connected to a first guide wheel, and the two first guide wheels are respectively rolledly connected to the first wheel grooves on the corresponding first annular guide rails installed on the front and rear sides of the support frame. The second guide wheel is in rolling connection with the second wheel groove corresponding to the second annular guide rail installed in the middle of the support frame.

2. The carton lifting and turning machine according to claim 1, characterized in that... The two ends of the drive shaft are fixed to the top of the frame by bearings with seats, and one end of the drive shaft extends outward and is connected to the power unit. The two ends of the driven shaft are fixed to the sliding bearing seat by bearings with seats, and the sliding seat is fixed to the screw with a nut on it. The screw is threaded to the inner wall of the sleeve fixed at the bottom of the frame.

3. The carton lifting and turning machine according to claim 1, characterized in that... The infeed conveyor and the outfeed conveyor, and the conveying surface near the lifting and tilting machine, are respectively provided with multiple corresponding through grooves.

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