Feeder for separating a stream of, in particular uniform, packaging units for use in a palletizer for palletizing the packaging units

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a feeder for separating a stream of, in particular uniform, packaging units for use in a palletizer for palletizing the packaging units, with a separating conveyor running in one conveying direction, which has a receiving side for receiving a, in particular continuous, stream of packaging units and a discharge side for discharging the packaging units, wherein the separating conveyor has a separating device which is configured to divide the stream of packaging units arriving at the receiving side in a single receiving transport lane, for example alternately, into two separating transport lanes flowing out at the discharge side, and with at least two alignment conveyors arranged side by side downstream of the discharge side, each of which has a rotating device or is designed as such.to rotate a packaging unit transported on the respective alignment conveyor horizontally, wherein the two separating transport tracks flowing from the discharge side of the separating conveyor and generated by the separating device, on the one hand, and the rotating devices, on the other hand, are aligned with each other such that the transfer of the packaging units from the separating conveyor occurs onto a central transport axis of the rotating device. Such a device is known from US 3,587,876 A1, which discloses a feeder according to the preamble of claim 1. The invention further relates to a corresponding method.

[0002] Palletizers are used to palletize products and / or packages onto a load carrier, such as a pallet. Correct palletizing, meaning the stacking of particularly similar packaging units on a pallet, is crucial to ensure the stability of the stacked units and to make the best possible use of the available space on the pallet surface, which is usually a Euro pallet. The packaging units can be longer than they are wide, with the diagonal being the largest dimension. To prevent the stacked packaging units from collapsing, which can occur even when using shrink wrap and can also happen during transport and / or handling of the pallets, it is necessary to stack the packaging units according to a predetermined pattern.To maximize stability, the packaging units are typically stacked overlapping, meaning each layer is offset from the one below it, ensuring maximum cohesion. To form the individual layers, the palletizer feeds multiple streams of packaging units into a layer formation area. Here, pushers collide the packaging units, and they are then pushed onto a discharge table. The discharge table consists of two parts, one open and one closed. In the open position, the two parts of the discharge table move apart, and the layer is dispensed onto the load carrier, such as a pallet, or onto layers already palletized on it.For the overlapping arrangement of the layers, it is necessary, depending on the type of layer structure, to feed some packaging units lengthwise and others crosswise, so that the supplied currents must rotate the packaging units accordingly by means of a rotary device.

[0003] It is known from the prior art to rotate packaging units by having them run off-center onto an obstacle, such as a bar, whereby the packaging unit is rotated around the obstacle as it is conveyed. For this to work, it is necessary to first move the packaging unit towards the side edge of the conveyor where the obstacle is located. The rotating bar rotary device thus requires a transport axis oriented towards the edge of the conveyor. However, this method of rotation has the disadvantage that the collision of the packaging unit with the obstacle can damage the packaging unit or cause crushing or denting. In contrast, clamp rotary devices and double-belt rotary devices allow for a gentler rotation of the packaging units.However, compared to the rotary rod turning device, these methods require the packaging units to be positioned centrally on the respective conveyor, meaning that the transport axes of the packaging units must be oriented towards the center of the conveyor.

[0004] A separating conveyor, also known from the prior art, can be used to align the packaging units at the side edge of the conveyor belt. This conveyor separates a stream of packaging units arriving in a single lane at one input side into two parallel partial streams, which exit from one output side of the separating conveyor. For this purpose, the separating device has a separating blade arranged along the conveyor path, which can be pivoted between two positions. This pivoting mechanism provides two paths for incoming packaging units and actively displaces the packaging units in a transverse direction relative to the conveyor direction as soon as they are next to the separating blade. The separating blade is pivotably mounted in the center of the separating conveyor and points towards the input side of the separating conveyor.However, the arrangement of the pivot axis only allows the packaging units to be deflected laterally to a certain degree. This means that transfer to subsequent conveyors equipped with a torsion bar rotary device can only occur off-center or at one side edge of the conveyor belt.

[0005] It is therefore the objective technical object of the present invention to further develop a feeder for a palletizer in such a way that gentle lateral displacement and gentle rotation of the packaging units as well as efficient palletizing are made possible.

[0006] Accordingly, a feeder according to claim 1 is provided, wherein the separating device has a first and a second separating section in the conveying direction, wherein the separating device in the first separating section has a movable deflection element for actively deflecting the packaging units laterally from their transport position and in the second separating section has at least one guide element centrally limiting the separating transport tracks for passively deflecting the packaging units laterally from their transport position, wherein the separating transport track in the second separating section is aligned towards a side edge of the separating conveyor.

[0007] The separating conveyor with its separating device aligns the transport axes for palletizing machines with at least two parallel transport lanes. The device distributes the goods to be transported (e.g., sacks, containers, cartons) from an infeed axe onto two transport lanes. The goods are then transferred to the conveyors following the separating conveyor via a central transport axis of the rotary device. This allows the use of clamp rotary devices or double-belt rotary devices for rotating the goods, which require a central transport axis.

[0008] The packaging units can be, in particular, bags filled with bulk material. The bags can contain, in particular, materials for the chemical or construction industries. The separating conveyor can have a conveyor belt. The separating conveyor can have a roller conveyor. It can be provided that the separating conveyor has a conveyor belt driven by a roller conveyor. The separating device can be configured to transfer the packaging units to the alignment conveyor at the discharge side of the separating device in a maximum edge position, in particular flush with a belt edge. The alignment conveyors can have several conveying sections. One conveying section of the alignment conveyor can be designed as a gravity roller conveyor. The section designed as a gravity roller conveyor can be directly adjacent to the separating conveyor.A further section may be designed or equipped to rotate the packaging units horizontally. The section in which the packaging units are rotated may have a minimum width greater than the maximum horizontal dimension of the packaging unit, for example, the diagonal of a transported bag. The alignment conveyors may be arranged directly parallel to one another, and the total width of the sections in which the packaging units are rotated may be equal to or greater than the width of the separating conveyor. The separating conveyor tracks at the discharge end of the separating conveyor, in particular their orientation transverse to the conveying direction, may be defined by at least one guide element of the separating conveyor.

[0009] The separating device can have a total length that is at least four times the length of a packaging unit to be conveyed. In particular, the total length of the separating device can be at least four times the length of a bag filled with bulk material to be conveyed. Such bags often have common standard dimensions. For example, a bag to be conveyed can have a length of 600 mm. Accordingly, the separating device can have a minimum length of 2,400 mm. Preferably, the length of the separating device can be 3,390 mm. It can be provided that the lateral displacement achievable by means of the separating device is at least 655 mm.

[0010] The rotary devices may be designed to rotate the packaging units around a vertical axis that intersects the central transport axis of the rotary device. The alignment conveyors may be configured as either a double-belt rotary device or a clamp rotary device. The double-belt rotary device may have two parallel conveyor belts separated along the central transport axis, which can be operated at individual speeds and / or in different directions. The clamp rotary device may be positioned above the alignment conveyor. The clamp rotary device may include a gripper that can laterally grasp and, if necessary, lift the packaging unit.The gripper can be rotated around a vertical axis, so that the packaging unit can be gripped in a first orientation and placed back on the alignment conveyor in a second orientation, rotated horizontally relative to the first orientation, in particular by 90 degrees.

[0011] It is conceivable that the transport axes of the rotary devices are each aligned collinearly to a respective central axis of the separating transport tracks.

[0012] It can be arranged that the separation of the packaging units onto the two separating transport tracks takes place as the packaging units are conveyed along the separating conveyor. This means that the packaging units can continue to be conveyed in the direction of travel at all times during the separation process.

[0013] The receiving end of the separating conveyor can be preceded by an upstream infeed conveyor for delivering the stream of packaging units running in a single receiving transport lane. The packaging units are fed onto the separating conveyor via a central transport axis. This central transport axis runs parallel to the conveying direction and passes through the pivot axis of the separating blade. The infeed conveyor can be narrower than the separating conveyor and positioned centrally upstream of it.

[0014] Active deflection can consist of using an active deflection element to allow the packaging units to be moved transversely to the conveying direction as they pass the element. The movable deflection element can have a first deflection position that directs incoming packaging units onto a first separation conveyor track. As the packaging units pass the deflection element, it pivots into a second deflection position, causing the passing packaging units to be moved laterally away from their conveying axis, corresponding to the movement of the deflection element.As the deflection element is pivoted into the second deflection position, the centrally flowing receiving transport track can be directed from the pivoted deflection element onto the second separating transport track, and as the packaging units pass the deflection element, the deflection element can be pivoted again into the first deflection position, so that the packaging units in the second separating transport track, passing the deflection element, are also laterally displaced from their transport axis, corresponding to the movement of the deflection element.

[0015] It may be provided that the separating transport track in the first separating section is aligned towards the center of the separating conveyor. In the first separating section, after the deflection movement has been carried out, the movable deflecting element for moving a number of packaging units towards the side edge of the belt can be aligned such that the guide edge provided centrally by the deflecting element points towards the center of the conveyor belt in the conveying direction. In the second separating section, the separating device can have at least two spreading guide elements extending from the center of the conveyor belt towards the side edges, which ensure that the separating transport tracks in the second separating section are aligned towards the side edges of the separating conveyor belt.

[0016] The movable deflection element can have a separating blade that is pivotable between two deflection positions and extends essentially in the conveying direction. The pivot axis of the separating blade can be located at its downstream end. The separating blade can be positioned transversely centrally on the separating conveyor and have two opposing guide edges that define the central boundaries of the separating transport lanes. These opposing lateral guides can be designed to guide and laterally deflect packaging units. In its deflection positions, the separating blade can be positioned with its receiving end to the side of the receiving transport axis, so that after deflection of the separating blade, the incoming packaging units are directed into one or the other separating transport lane.The separating blade can be guided in a guide rail at its receiving end and pivoted between the two deflection positions by means of a motorized adjustment device. At its opposite, downstream side, the separating blade can be pivotally mounted and held by a frame spanning the separating conveyor. In particular, it can be provided that the active displacement of the packaging units includes deflecting the separating blade in a direction essentially transverse to the conveying direction. The first separating section can each have lateral guides opposite the guide edges of the separating blade, arranged so that they converge towards the center of the separating conveyor in the conveying direction.

[0017] In a first deflection position of the separating device, incoming packaging units can flow into the first of the separating transport tracks, and in a second deflection position of the separating device, incoming packaging units can flow into the second of the separating transport tracks. For this purpose, as described above, the receiving end of the separating blade can be pivoted to a position beyond the central receiving transport axis, so that the incoming packaging units each approach one of the guide edges of the separating blade and are guided along it.

[0018] It can be provided that, for passive deflection in the second separating section, the packaging units are guided along the guide elements directed towards the outside of the separating conveyor in the conveying direction, with the guide elements remaining stationary during this process. The guide elements can have an outward angular offset relative to the conveying direction. In contrast to the active deflection using the separating blade, which is adjustable between deflection positions in the first separating section, in the second separating section the packaging units are merely guided along the guide elements of the separating device directed towards the belt edges until they have achieved the correct alignment for transfer onto the central transport axes of the alignment conveyors following the separating conveyor.Thus, in the first separation section, the incoming packaging units are initially divided between the two separation conveyor tracks and deflected from the central conveyor axis. This results in the distance between the packaging units and the conveyor side edges in the first separation section being, for example, one-quarter of the width of the separating conveyor. In the second separation section, the packaging units are then conveyed further by the separating conveyor and reach the outward-facing guide elements, along which they are guided to their final discharge positions. The guide elements may be articulated at their upstream ends, allowing the downstream ends to pivot transversely to the conveying direction.It may be provided that the guide elements can be adjusted by a motor, for example, to adapt the separating conveyor to different sizes of packaging units. It may also be provided that the separating blade on the one hand and the guide elements on the other converge at a single point, so that the guide edges of the separating blade and the guide surfaces of the guide elements merge seamlessly.

[0019] The downstream ends of the guide elements can provide a central boundary for the respective separating conveyor lane for the packaging units exiting the separating conveyor. The ends of the guide elements can extend beyond the separating conveyor to the alignment conveyors. Furthermore, at least two lateral guide elements can be provided, bridging the transition between the separating conveyor and the alignment conveyors in the conveying direction. These lateral guide elements each provide a lateral boundary for the respective separating conveyor lane for the packaging units exiting the separating conveyor. The lateral guide elements and the ends of the separating device's guide elements can thus be positioned opposite each other in the transfer area between the separating conveyor and the alignment conveyors, each laterally limiting the passage.

[0020] It may be provided that different widths of the separating transport tracks can be adjusted using the guide elements. The guide elements may include at least one motor by which they can be adjusted.

[0021] The invention further relates to a method according to claim 14 for operating a feeder for a palletizer, comprising the steps of: Feeding a continuous stream of packaging units centrally onto the receiving side of a separating conveyor; moving at least one first packaging unit towards a first outer side of the separating conveyor by means of a separating device associated with the separating conveyor; moving at least one second packaging unit towards a second outer side of the separating conveyor by means of the separating device; transferring the first packaging unit onto a central transport axis of a first rotary device downstream of the separating conveyor; transferring the second packaging unit onto a central transport axis of a second rotary device downstream of the separating conveyor.

[0022] The process may further include the step of horizontally rotating the first and / or second packaging unit on the first and / or second separating conveyor by approximately 90 degrees using a rotating device that rotates the respective packaging unit about its vertical central axis.

[0023] Furthermore, the packaging units can be rotated by the rotating device so that the vertical central axis of the packaging unit intersects the central transport axis of the rotating device before and after the rotation.

[0024] Furthermore, the alignment conveyors can be designed as a double belt rotary device or have a clamp rotary device.

[0025] It may be provided that the packaging units have a greater length than width and are fed onto the separating conveyor in a longitudinal orientation.

[0026] The alignment conveyors can each have a width greater than the largest dimension of the packaging unit, especially its diagonal dimension. This ensures that the packaging units can be rotated on the alignment conveyor without coming into contact with a side edge of the conveyor and potentially being pushed out of the central transport axis.

[0027] The movement of the packaging units towards the outer edges of the separating conveyor in a first section can include active movement, and in a second section, passive movement. Active movement of the packaging units can be achieved by the movement of a deflecting element of the separating device. This movement can be essentially transverse to the conveying direction. The transverse movement of the packaging units can occur during their conveying motion on the separating conveyor. Passive movement can be achieved by stationary guide elements of the separating device during conveying. These guide elements are arranged to intersect the transport axes of the packaging units and passively push them off their transport axes during their conveying motion, causing them to move towards the edges of the conveyor belt.Accordingly, the passive displacement of the packaging units can include guiding the packaging units along a guide element directed towards the outside of the separator conveyor in the conveying direction.

[0028] Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained with reference to the following figures. These show: Fig. 1 a top view of an embodiment of a separating conveyor known from the prior art; Fig. 2 a perspective overall view of an embodiment of the palletizer according to the invention; Fig. 3 a top view of an embodiment of the feeder according to the invention; Fig. 4 a perspective view of an embodiment of the separating conveyor according to the invention; Fig. 5 a top view of an embodiment of the separating conveyor according to the invention.

[0029] The in Figure 1The separating conveyor 4 shown, known from the prior art, essentially consists of a conveying device having an upstream receiving side 5 and a downstream output side 6. It is provided that packaging units are conveyed along a central section at the receiving side 5.

[0030] Transport axis Z in a single receiving transport track 8 into the separating conveyor 4. A separating device 7, which essentially comprises a separating blade 16 pivotable transversely to the conveying direction F, serves to divide the incoming single receiving transport track 8 into two separating transport tracks 9.1, 9.2, so that these can be transferred separately to a subsequent conveyor at the outlet side 6. The separating blade 16 is adjustable between two deflection positions about a fixed pivot axis 17 located in the area of ​​the outlet side 6 and can thereby release either one or the other separating transport track 9.1, 9.2. In the illustration shown, the upstream end of the separating blade 16 is located above the central receiving transport axis Z, so that separating transport track 9.2 is released.When packaging units enter the conveyor from the center, they move towards the guide edge of the separating blade 16 facing them and are conveyed along it in the direction of travel. When the packaging units are next to the separating blade 16, the blade pivots into its lower deflection position, actively moving the incoming packaging units towards the lower side edge of the separating conveyor 4. Simultaneously, the separating transport track 9.1 is released, allowing the process to be repeated in this track.The separating blade 16, in its maximum deflection position, does not move the packaging units all the way to the side edge of the belt. Instead, the packaging units leave the separating conveyor 4 along the indicated transport axes X and Y. This ensures that the transfer to downstream conveyors is such that the packaging units are positioned off-center on the inner sides of the respective conveyors. This works as described above when using a rod rotary device, but not when double-belt rotary devices or clamp rotary devices are used to gently rotate packaging units, which require the packaging units to be fed centrally onto the subsequent conveyors.

[0031] Figure 2Figure 1 shows an overall view of an embodiment of a palletizer 1, which has a feeder 2 according to the invention. Packaging units flow via an inlet conveyor 19 centrally onto the separating conveyor 4, which essentially divides the packaging units from a single track into two separating transport tracks and further displaces the packaging units in the direction of the belt side edges. For this purpose, the separating conveyor 4 has a deflection element 14 or a separating blade 16 in a first separating section 12, which, as described in connection with Figure 1The separating conveyor 4 is described as being pivotable between two deflection positions and actively pushing the packaging units out of their transport axis. A second separating section 13 follows the first separating section 12, in which the packaging units are passively pushed out of their transport axes by means of two guide elements 15 that intersect the transport axes of the separating transport tracks 9.1, 9.2. Downstream of the separating conveyor 4 are two parallel alignment conveyors 10.1, 10.2, which convey the separated packaging units further and each have a clamping rotary device 11 by means of which the packaging units can be rotated centrally so that they remain in the central transport axis. For each pallet layer, the packaging units are placed on one of the first alignment conveyors 10.1.The packaging units are rotated 90 degrees on the first alignment conveyor 10.1 so that they are oriented transversely, while the packaging units on a second alignment conveyor 10.2 remain in their longitudinal orientation. For the next layer, the packaging units on the first alignment conveyor 10.1 remain in their longitudinal orientation and are rotated on the second alignment conveyor 10.2, and so on. The packaging units are then fed to a layer formation area where they are collected for a pallet layer and then pushed by pushers 24 towards a discharge table 21. Beneath this table is a lifting mechanism 22 and a lifting mechanism roller conveyor 23 on which the pallet to be loaded is positioned. The discharge table consists of two parts that can be in an open or a closed position.In the open position, the two parts of the unloading table move apart and the layer is placed onto the pallet, or onto layers already palletized on it.

[0032] Figure 3Figure 1 shows a top view of an embodiment of the feeder 2 according to the invention. Sacks 3 flow continuously from the inlet conveyor 19 in a single receiving transport track 8 along a central transport axis Z onto a receiving side 5 of the separating conveyor 4. This conveyor has a first separating section 12 in which the incoming sacks 3 are distributed onto the separating transport tracks 9.1, 9.2 by means of the deflection element 14 or the separating blade 16. By actively pivoting the deflection element 14 when the sacks are next to it, the sacks are displaced transversely to the conveying direction F from their respective transport axes. In the first separating section 12, the sacks 3 are guided laterally between the respective guide edge of the separating blade on one side and the respective side guide 26 on the other.In the second separating section 13, the bags 3, which already flow in slightly off-center from the first separating section 12, are guided by means of the centrally arranged guide elements 15.1, 15.2, which run towards the belt side edges, to their outermost position, i.e., approximately flush with the respective belt side edge. It can be seen that the separating transport tracks 9.1, 9.2 in the first separating section 12 are each aligned towards the center of the separating conveyor 4, and in the second separating section 13 they are each aligned towards the belt side edges. The bags 3 are transferred centrally along transport axes X, Y onto the alignment conveyors 10.1, 10.2. In the transition area between the separating conveyor 4 and the alignment conveyors 10.1, 10.2, lateral side elements 18.1, 18.2 are arranged, which extend in the conveying direction F and essentially along gravity roller conveyors 25 adjacent to the separating conveyor 4.The ends of the side elements 18.1 and 18.2 extend upstream to the separating conveyor 4, so that, together with the ends of the guide elements 15.1 and 15.2, they define the passage for the bags 3 between the separating conveyor and the alignment conveyors. Furthermore, the side elements 18.1 and 18.2 extend to the belt conveyors adjacent to the gravity roller conveyors 25, ensuring that the bags are guided laterally along the entire distance between the separating conveyor 4 and the belt conveyor adjacent to the gravity roller conveyors 25. The primary purpose of the side elements 18.1 and 18.2 is to prevent the bags from falling laterally off the gravity roller conveyor under back pressure from multiple bags following behind. The actual alignment process then takes place on the subsequent belt conveyors, which are wider.For the purposes of this application, the gravity roller conveyor, the subsequent narrow belt conveyor, and the following wider belt conveyor are considered part of the alignment conveyor 10.1, 10.2. Clamp-type rotating devices 11 are used to rotate the bags about their vertical central axis A in the central transport axis X, Y. In the illustration shown, a bag 3 on the right alignment conveyor 10.1 has been rotated by 90 degrees so that it is conveyed transversely. In contrast, the bag 3 on the left alignment conveyor 10.2 has not been rotated so that it is conveyed longitudinally. The bags have a length L greater than their width B. The diagonal D represents the largest dimension of the bags. In the area of ​​the clamp-type rotating devices 11, the alignment conveyors each have a width greater than the diagonal D of the bags 3.

[0033] Fig. 4Figure 1 shows a perspective frontal view of the separating device 4. The deflection element 14 in the first separating section 12 and the guide elements 15.1, 15.2 in the second separating section 13 converge at a common point. As a result, the transition between the guide edges of the separating blade 16 and the guide elements 15 has no protrusion on which the bags could snag. The separating blade 16 and the guide elements 15.1, 15.2 are each pivotably mounted in a frame structure spanning transversely across the separating conveyor 4. The separating blade has a motorized adjustment device 20 on the receiving side 5 of the separating conveyor 4, by means of which the separating blade 16 can be pivoted along a guide rail transversely to the conveying direction F. The guide elements 15.1, 15.2, which are passive during operation, can also be adjusted to set the separating conveyor.The separating elements are adjustable transversely to the conveying direction by motors, allowing adaptation to different packaging unit sizes. In the area of ​​the first separating section 12, the separating transport tracks are defined laterally, firstly in the middle by the guide edges of the separating blade 16, and secondly by the side guides 26. These guides each have a first section oriented towards the center of the separating conveyor 4 in the conveying direction F, and a subsequent second section oriented parallel to the conveying direction F, which projects into the second separating section 13. In the second separating section 13, the separating transport tracks are bounded laterally, firstly in the middle by the guide elements 15.1, 15.2, and secondly at the sides of the belt edges by the side elements 18.1, 18.2, which are oriented parallel to the conveying direction F.

[0034] Fig. 5Figure 1 shows a top view of an embodiment of the separating conveyor 4 according to the invention. This particularly illustrates the central positioning of a bag 3 flowing out of the discharge side 6 of the separating conveyor 4 with respect to a subsequent alignment conveyor 10.1. In the illustration, the separating blade 16 is in an upper deflection position, so that the centrally flowing bags 3 approach the lower guide edge of the separating blade 16 and, as long as the separating blade 16 is not adjusted, are guided passively along this edge, slightly rotated, towards the lower outer edge of the conveyor. In this orientation of the separating blade 16, the lower guide element 15.1 is essentially collinear with the lower guide edge of the separating blade 16, so that the bag 3 experiences no or only a slight change in direction during the transition between the separating blade 16 and the guide element 15.1.

[0035] The bag 3 located on the upper separating conveyor track illustrates the path of a bag that is at its upstream end when the separating blade 16 pivots. As the separating blade 16 pivots, the bags next to it are actively deflected from their transport axis. Because the upstream end of the separating blade 16 is closest to the outer edge of the conveyor, the greatest active deflection of the bags 3 occurs in this area. The depicted bag in the upper separating conveyor track shows this degree of deflection. Due to the large deflection, the bag is now in contact with the side guide rail 26, which guides it slightly back towards the center of the separating conveyor until it reaches the second separating section 13.Upon exiting the first separating section 12, the bag 3 is guided laterally by the side guide 26 and moves towards the guide element 15.2. As the bag 3 is conveyed further, it is pushed along the guide element 15.2 towards the side edge of the belt. When the bag 3 hits the side element 18.1, it is rotated again into an orientation parallel to the conveying direction F, so that the bag 3 is transferred in a straight line to a central transport axis X of the subsequent clamping rotary device 11.1. It can be seen that the guide elements 15.1, 15.2 are pivotable about pivot axes 27. Furthermore, it can be seen that the separating blade 16 is pivotable about a pivot axis 17. The separating blade 16 is pivotable via a motorized adjustment device 20. The discharge-side distance of the guide elements 15.1, 15.2 is 15.1.2 is adjustable via an adjustment motor 28, so that the width of the separating transport lanes can be adjusted to different widths of transported goods. Reference symbol list

[0036] 1 Palletizer 2 Infeed conveyor 3 Bag 4 Separating conveyor 5 Receiving side 6 Discharge side 7 Separating device 8 Receiving transport track 9.1 Separating transport track 9.2 Separating transport track 10.1 First alignment conveyor 10.2 Second alignment conveyor 11.1 Clamp rotating device 11.2 Clamp rotating device 12 First separating section 13 Second separating section 14 Movable deflection element 15.1 Guide element 15.2 Guide element 16 Separating blade 17 Swivel axis separating blade 18.1 Side element 18.2 Side element 19 Infeed conveyor 20 Motorized adjustment device 21 Discharge table 22 Lifting mechanism 23 Lifting mechanism roller conveyor 24 Pusher 25 Gravity roller conveyor 26 Side guides 27 Swivel axis guide element 28 Adjustment motor guide element F Conveyor direction X, Y, Z Transport axes Vertical rotary axis B Bag width L Bag length D Bag diagonal

Claims

1. Feed conveyor (2) for separating a flow of, in particular uniform, packaging units (3) for use in a palletizer (1) for palletizing the packaging units (3), having a separating conveyor (4) which runs in a conveying direction (F) and which has a receiving side (5) for receiving a flow of, in particular uniform, packaging units (3) and a discharge side (6) for discharging the packaging units (3), wherein the separating conveyor (4) has a separating device (7) which is set up to divide the flow of packaging units (3) arriving at the receiving side (5) in a single receiving transport track (8), for example alternately, into two separating transport tracks (9.1, 9.2) flowing out at the discharge side (6), and having at least two aligning conveyors (10.1, 10.2) which are arranged next to one another downstream of the discharge side (6) and which each have a rotating device (11.1, 11.2) or are designed as such to horizontally rotate a packaging unit (3) transported on the respective aligning conveyor (10.1, 10.2), wherein the two separating transport tracks (9.1, 9.2) flowing out at the discharge side (6) of the separating conveyor (4) and generated by the separating device (7), on the one hand, and the rotating devices (11.1, 11.2), on the other hand, are aligned with respect to one another such that the transfer of the packaging units (3) from the separating conveyor (4) takes place in each case on a central transport axis (X, Y) of the rotating device (11.1, 11.2), characterized in that the separating device (7) has a first (12) and a second separating section (13) in the conveying direction (F), wherein the separating device (7) has, in the first separating section (12), a movable deflecting element (14) for actively laterally deflecting the packaging units (3) out of their transport position and has, in the second separating section (13), at least one guide element (15.1, 15.2) which in each case centrally delimits the separating transport tracks (9.1, 9.2) for passively laterally deflecting the packaging units (3) out of their transport position, wherein the separating transport track (9.1, 9.2) is aligned towards the centre of the separating conveyor (4) in the first separating section (12) and is aligned towards a side edge of the separating conveyor (4) in the second separating section (13).

2. Feed conveyor (2) according to claim 1, wherein the rotating devices are designed to rotate the packaging units (3) about a vertical axis (C) which intersects the central transport axis (X, Y) of the respective rotating devices (10.1, 10.2).

3. Feed conveyor (2) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the aligning conveyors (10.1, 10.2) are each designed as a double-belt rotating device or each have a clamp rotating device (11.1, 11.2).

4. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the transport axes (X, Y) of the rotating devices are each aligned collinearly with respect to a respective centre axis of the separating transport tracks (9.1, 9.2).

5. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the separating of the packaging units (3) onto the two separating transport tracks (9.1, 9.2) takes place in the course of the conveying of the packaging units (3) along the separating conveyor (4).

6. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein an input conveyor (19) for delivering the flow of packaging units (3) running in a single receiving transport track (8) is arranged upstream of the receiving side (5) of the separating conveyor (4), wherein the delivery of the packaging units (3) onto the separating conveyor (4) takes place on a central transport axis (Z).

7. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the movable deflecting element (14) has a separating blade (16) which is pivotable between two deflecting positions and extends substantially in the conveying direction (F).

8. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein, in a first deflecting position of the separating device (7), packaging units (3) arriving on the receiving side flow into a first of the separating transport tracks (9.1) and, in a second deflecting position of the separating device (7), packaging units (3) arriving on the receiving side flow into a second of the separating transport tracks (9.2).

9. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein, for passive deflection in the second separating section (13), the guiding of the packaging units (3) along takes place on the guide elements (15.1, 15.2) directed towards the outer side of the separating conveyor (4), wherein the guide elements (15.1, 15.2) stand still during the guiding of the packaging units (3) along.

10. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein, as a result of the downstream ends of the guide elements (15.1, 15.2), a central boundary of the respective separating transport track (9.1, 9.2) is provided for the packaging units (3) flowing out of the discharge side (6) of the separating conveyor (4).

11. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein, by means of the guide elements (15.1, 15.2), different widths of the separating transport tracks (9.1, 9.2) can be set.

12. Feed conveyor (2) according to claim 11, wherein the guide elements (15.1, 15.2) have at least one motor (28), by means of which they can be adjusted.

13. Feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, which has at least two side elements (18) which bridge the transition between the separating conveyor (4) and the aligning conveyors (10.1, 10.2) in each case in the conveying direction (F) and by means of which in each case a lateral boundary of the respective separating transport track (9.1, 9.2) is provided for the packaging units (3) flowing out of the discharge side (6) of the separating conveyor (4).

14. Method for operating a feed conveyor (2) according to one of the preceding claims, having the steps: centrally feeding a continuous flow of, in particular uniform, packaging units (3) onto the receiving side (5) of a separating conveyor (4); displacing at least one first packaging unit (3) in the direction of a first outer side of the separating conveyor (4) by means of a separating device (7) assigned to the separating conveyor (4); displacing at least one second packaging unit (3) in the direction of a second outer side of the separating conveyor (4) by means of the separating device (7); transferring the first packaging unit (3) onto a central transport axis (X) of a first rotating device (11.1) following downstream of the separating conveyor (4); transferring the second packaging unit (3) onto a central transport axis (Y) of a second rotating device (11.2) following downstream of the separating conveyor (4).

15. Method according to claim 14, further having the step: horizontally rotating the first and / or the second packaging unit (3) on the first and / or second aligning conveyor (10.1, 10.2) by approximately 90 degrees by means of a rotating device (11.1, 11.2) rotating the respective packaging unit (3) about its vertical centre axis (C).

16. Method according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the packaging units (3) are rotated by the rotating devices such that the vertical centre axis (C) of the packaging unit (3), before and after the rotation, intersects the central transport axis (X, Y) of the rotating devices (11.1, 11.2).

17. Method according to one of claims 14 to 16, wherein the aligning conveyors (10.1, 10.2) are designed as double-belt rotating devices or have a clamp rotating device.

18. Method according to one of claims 14 to 17, wherein the packaging units (3) have a greater length (L) than width (B) and are fed onto the separating conveyor (4) in longitudinal alignment.

19. Method according to one of claims 14 to 18, wherein the aligning conveyors (10.1, 10.2) each have a width (BAF) which is greater than the greatest dimension of the packaging unit (3), in particular the diagonal dimension (D) thereof.

20. Method according to one of claims 14 to 19, wherein the displacement of the packaging units (3) in the direction of the outer sides of the separating conveyor (4) comprises an active displacement in a first section (12) and comprises a passive displacement in a second section (13).

21. Method according to claim 20, wherein the passive displacement of the packaging units (3) comprises the guiding of the packaging units (3) along a guide element (15.1, 15.2) directed towards the outer side of the separating conveyor (4) in the conveying direction (F).