Pick-up and / or set-down disc for moving a container

Abstract

The invention relates to a pick-up and / or set-down disc for moving a container from a first position to a second position in a pick-up and / or set-down device. To make available a pick-up and / or set-down disc for moving a container, which allows the container to be picked up and / or set down particularly gently and additionally makes it possible to reduce the wear and also the noise during operation and to facilitate and accelerate assembly, provision is made that the pick-up and / or set-down disc has a disc main body for arranging the pick-up and / or set-down disc on a disc shaft axis, at least one driver element which is arranged on the disc main body and serves to guide the container during the movement, and a means of damping the driver element.

Description

[0001] Description

[0002] Loading and / or unloading disc for moving a container

[0003] The invention relates to a loading and / or dispensing disc for moving a container from a first position to a second position in a loading and / or dispensing device, in particular for a container cleaning machine, as well as a disc shaft for a loading and / or dispensing device for container treatment.

[0004] Loading and / or dispensing devices with a disc shaft are known in a wide variety of designs from the prior art and are commonly used to load containers to be treated, for example reusable bottles to be cleaned, into a container treatment device. For this purpose, such a loading device has a disc shaft with several loading and / or dispensing discs arranged on a common disc shaft axis for displacing one container at a time from a first position to a second position. The container is typically displaced by means of at least one driver element and in particular by means of a finger for raising or lowering the container in the region of the container base and by means of a back for bearing against a container side wall.The finger and the back are arranged on the loading and / or dispensing disc, whereby it is already known from the prior art to screw the finger and the back onto the loading and / or dispensing disc as an interchangeable component.

[0005] During operation of the prior art loading and / or dispensing devices, a bottle to be moved is fed onto the rotating disc shaft, where it strikes a moving finger of the loading and / or dispensing disc. The finger strikes the container base before the bottle is strongly accelerated, resulting in considerable noise and increased wear on the finger. Furthermore, the container may even be damaged by the finger striking the container base, resulting in a malfunction and a lengthy interruption in operation while the shards are removed from the loading and / or dispensing device. Finally, the screw connection of the fingers and backs in the prior art does not allow for quick replacement or easy assembly, so that replacing a worn finger or back also results in a lengthy downtime.

[0006] The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a loading and / or unloading disc for moving a container, which enables the container to be picked up and / or unloaded particularly gently and, in addition, reduces wear and noise during operation and facilitates and accelerates assembly.

[0007] The object is achieved according to the invention by a loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to claim 1 and by a loading and / or dispensing device according to claim 12. Advantageous developments of the invention are specified in the dependent claims.

[0008] The loading and / or dispensing disc according to the invention for displacing a container from a first position to a second position in a loading and / or dispensing device has a disc base body for arranging the loading and / or dispensing disc on a disc shaft axis and at least one driver element arranged on the disc base body for guiding the container during displacement, wherein the driver element has a damping.

[0009] Furthermore, the invention relates to a disc shaft for a loading and / or dispensing device for container treatment, with a plurality of loading and / or dispensing discs according to the invention arranged on a common disc shaft axis.

[0010] The inventors have recognized that it is advantageous to dampen the driver element, and in particular a finger and / or a back, so that a dampened contact between the container to be moved and the driver element is enabled. This reduces the force acting on the container, thus reducing noise and significantly reducing the risk of container damage. Accordingly, reliable and uninterrupted operation over a long period of time can be ensured.

[0011] A loading and / or unloading device within the meaning of the invention is a device for moving a plurality of containers simultaneously from one position to another position in order to load the containers into another device or unload them from another device. The loading and / or unloading device for containers is preferably used in the field of industrial container filling and particularly preferably on a container cleaning machine. The displacement of each container from the first position to the second position can be a change in the orientation and / or spatial position of the container during loading and / or unloading, wherein pure rotation, pure translation or a superposition of a rotation and a translation can be used to get from the first position to the second position.

[0012] In order to be able to move several containers accordingly, the loading and / or unloading device has a disk shaft. The disk shaft is typically formed from several loading and / or unloading disks arranged on the disk shaft axis. The disk shaft is also referred to as a loading, supply or unloading shaft. The loading and / or unloading disks are preferably arranged parallel to one another on the disk shaft and / or have an identical angular alignment, in particular with respect to the disk shaft axis. Likewise preferably, all loading and / or unloading disks are arranged on the disk shaft at the same distance from one another or from the adjacent disk. This distance is preferably greater than the diameter of a container and / or less than twice the diameter of the container.

[0013] According to the invention, the loading and / or dispensing disc is formed from at least one disc base body and at least one driver element arranged thereon. The disc base body has at least the function of forming a disc or a disc segment for arrangement on the disc shaft axis and of holding at least one driver element. Each loading and / or dispensing disc is preferably formed from at least two disc segments, with all disc segments of a loading and / or dispensing disc particularly preferably substantially surrounding the disc shaft axis together. A loading and / or dispensing disc preferably has 2-4 and particularly preferably 2-3 disc segments. Likewise preferably, each disc segment has exactly one disc base body.

[0014] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the disc base body is formed essentially in one piece. Furthermore, it is also conceivable for a disc base body to be an assembly comprising several components. To advantageously keep the moving masses particularly low, the disc segment and in particular the disc base body are preferably formed as a lightweight construction and, for this purpose, have numerous recesses. Particularly preferably, the disc segment and in particular the disc base body are formed in a framework or scaffold-like manner. Most preferably, the material is removed from non-load-bearing areas and / or reduced to force-absorbing areas in the form of struts.

[0015] The disc shaft, the loading and / or delivery discs and / or the disc base bodies can in principle be formed from any desired material, wherein the components of the disc shaft, in particular the loading and / or delivery discs, the disc base bodies, the disc shaft axis, a frame and / or further components are preferably formed from metal and particularly preferably from stainless steel.

[0016] The container can, in principle, be any vessel, with the container preferably being made of plastic or glass and / or being intended for holding a food item and, in particular, a beverage. Accordingly, the container is preferably a bottle. Furthermore, the container is preferably part of a reusable system and, accordingly, is particularly preferably a reusable bottle, in particular made of glass or plastic.

[0017] A driver element within the meaning of the invention is a component or assembly arranged on the disc base body and intended to come into direct contact with the container for displacing the container. Particularly preferably, the container is exclusively in contact with one or more driver elements during displacement. The driver element is preferably a component that can be secured to the disc base body and is particularly preferably formed in one piece. The loading and / or unloading disc or each disc base body can have only a single driver element or several driver elements that are identical or different from one another.

[0018] The driver element is preferably a finger or a back, wherein the finger and the back can be formed from any desired material. Preferably, the finger and / or the back is formed from a plastic. Likewise preferably, each disc base body has at least one, particularly preferably exactly one finger for lifting or lowering a container and very particularly preferably also at least one, particularly preferably exactly one back for contacting the container. Furthermore preferably, the at least one finger of a disc base body is provided to come into contact with a container in the region of the container base and in doing so to raise or lower the container or to displace it from the first position to the second position. Likewise preferably, the finger comes into contact with the container exclusively in the region of the container base and / or a lower container edge. In this case, the finger is also referred to as a driver finger.The back is preferably provided to support a container at least in sections on a container side wall during movement.

[0019] Preferably, the loading and / or dispensing disc has at least one finger and one spine, and particularly preferably, the loading and / or dispensing disc has fingers and spines in pairs, with very particularly preferably two fingers and two spines being arranged alternately along the circumference of the loading and / or dispensing disc. Very particularly preferably, the loading and / or dispensing disc is formed from several, in particular two, disc segments, each with a disc base body on which a finger and a spine are arranged interchangeably.

[0020] According to the invention, the driver element has damping, wherein the damping can be achieved by a damped arrangement of the driver element on the disk base body and / or by damping within the driver element itself. A preferred embodiment of the damping provides that the driver element is fixed to the disk base body in a movable and, in particular, displaceable and / or pivotable manner for damping purposes. Particularly preferably, at least one damping element is provided to dampen this movement of the driver element and / or to move the driver element back to its initial position relative to the disk base body in the event of a deflection. Alternatively or additionally, damping can also be achieved by specifically adapting the material elasticity of at least one section of the driver element.

[0021] According to a preferred development of the loading and / or dispensing disc according to the invention, the damping is achieved by fastening the driver element to the disc base body, thereby ensuring particularly efficient damping, in particular regardless of the specific point of contact of the container with the driver element. A particularly preferred embodiment of the loading and / or dispensing disc according to the invention is one in which the driver element is mounted on the disc base body via a pivot point, in particular via a fixed pivot point, and in a damped manner, wherein the mounting in the region of the pivot point is preferably effected by means of a screw or a screw bolt. Mounted via a pivot point and in a damped manner means in particular that there is at least one fixing device that can be pivoted about the pivot point and that, in addition, a movement, in particular this pivoting, is damped.The screw is preferably arranged at an end of the driver element opposite a contact area for a container and / or centrally relative to two side surfaces of the driver element. Furthermore, the entire portion of the shaft of the screw or bolt penetrating the driver element preferably has no thread and / or a smooth surface, so that pivoting of the driver element about the central longitudinal axis of the screw is particularly easy.

[0022] According to an advantageous embodiment of the loading and / or dispensing disc according to the invention, the driver element is arranged or secured to the disc base body by means of at least one screw connection and at least one further, positive-locking and screwless connection, thereby enabling particularly easy attachment of the driver element to the disc base body and correspondingly particularly rapid replacement of the driver element. The further positive-locking connection is preferably exclusively positive-locking and / or does not have a screw or the like. Particularly preferably, the securing takes place by means of a single screw, in particular as the pivot point of the bearing, and by means of a single positive-locking attachment.

[0023] Furthermore, a preferred embodiment of the loading and / or dispensing disc according to the invention is one in which the driver element is positively secured to the disc base body by a web protruding from the disc base body being inserted and preferably pressed into an elongated hole in the driver element. The elongated hole and the web preferably run tangentially to the intended direction of rotation of the loading and / or dispensing disc on a disc shaft axis and / or tangentially to the movement path of the driver element and / or parallel to a receiving surface of the disc base body for arranging the loading and / or dispensing disc on a disc shaft axis and / or at right angles to the radial direction of a disc shaft axis. However, a different arrangement is also possible, whereby the deviation from this arrangement is preferably no more than 30°, particularly preferably no more than 20° and most particularly preferably no more than 10°.

[0024] The elongated hole can extend over any section of the driver element, wherein the elongated hole preferably extends over at least 50%, particularly preferably over at least 75% and very particularly preferably over 60% - 90% of the width of the driver element. The web preferably runs linearly or uncurved over its entire length and / or width, although a curved design would also be conceivable in principle. Furthermore, the web is preferably formed integrally with the disk base body and is particularly preferably formed by a section projecting at right angles and in particular by a section angled at right angles. Furthermore, the web preferably extends over at least 50%, particularly preferably over at least 90% and very particularly preferably over at least 95% of the length of the elongated hole. Finally, the web preferably has a length such that it completely covers the elongated hole, ieover the entire material thickness of the driver element, penetrates and / or ends flush with the surface of the driver element.

[0025] An advantageous development of the loading and / or unloading disc according to the invention provides that the damping of a driver element which is positively secured by means of an elongated hole takes place, in particular exclusively, via the material elasticity of the driver element, in particular in the region of the elongated hole. The entire driver element can be formed from a correspondingly elastic material, although it is preferred that the damping only takes place via the material surrounding the elongated hole. For this purpose, the driver element can be formed in one piece from several different materials and / or the sections made of different materials can be inseparably connected to one another. Furthermore, a section made of a material with high elasticity can also be arranged as a damping element on the driver element in the region of the elongated hole and can preferably surround the web on all sides.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment of the supply and / or delivery disc according to the invention, at least one damping element is arranged in the region of a positive fastening of the driver element to the disc base body, wherein particularly preferably the at least one damping element is formed from an elastic material and / or is arranged between the web of the disc base body and the elongated hole of the driver element. The damping element is preferably an independent element and / or not formed integrally with the driver element. Particularly preferably, the damping element is removable from the driver element and / or from the disc base body in order to enable easy replacement of a worn or fatigued damping element. Furthermore preferably, the damping element is formed integrally and / or from an elastomer.Particularly preferably, the damping element has a holding section at two opposite ends for securing the damping element to the driver element, in particular in the region of the elongated hole, and a damping section arranged centrally between the two holding sections. Finally, the damping section is preferably designed to pass through an opening in the web and / or to be arranged on the web. Likewise preferably, the damping section has a diameter that is smaller than that of the holding sections and / or has a cylindrical shape.

[0027] One possibility for achieving damping is to form regions of the driver element with different elasticities. In this case, it is preferred that the driver element for damping is formed in a sandwich construction and / or in two sections from different materials, wherein one material in at least one damping region has a higher elasticity than at least one remaining material, in particular the remaining material of the driver element. The driver element is particularly preferably formed using an injection molding process and particularly preferably simultaneously from at least two different materials, in particular two different polymers. Furthermore, a fastening means and in particular a screw is preferably arranged in a region of the driver element made of the remaining material or the material with the low elasticity.

[0028] It is particularly preferred that the damping of the driver element is achieved via a section of elastic material in the region of a contact surface for a container, in particular in the region of a tip of a driver element formed as a driver finger. Thus, at least not exclusively damping of the disk base body relative to the driver element is provided, but (also) damping of the driver element relative to a container to be displaced.

[0029] Alternatively or additionally, the loading and / or dispensing disc can also be formed such that the driver element for damping has a damping region with a higher elasticity of the material in a central region between a contact surface for a container and the region for arrangement on the disc base body and / or surrounding an elongated hole of the driver element.

[0030] As an alternative way of securing the driver element to the disc base body to form a web, the driver element can be pushed onto a region of the disc base body and secured by means of at least one, preferably at least two, and particularly preferably exactly two screws, wherein at least one of the screws is preferably made of an elastic material so that appropriate damping is achieved. Particularly preferably, the driver element is pushed on as a sleeve surrounding a section of the disc base body, wherein a form-fitting securing is particularly preferably already effected. Damping can then be achieved both by means of one or more damping elements and by the material elasticity of the driver element, particularly in the region in which the section of the disc base body is received.In the invention, it is also generally conceivable to form fastening means and in particular screws from an elastic material and particularly preferably from an elastomer in order to achieve damping or to contribute to damping.

[0031] Several embodiments of a loading and / or dispensing disc according to the invention with a driver element are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings. The figures show:

[0032] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a loading and / or dispensing device for container treatment,

[0033] Fig. 2 is a side view of a first embodiment of a disc base body with a driver element,

[0034] Fig. 3 is a detailed sectional view of the fixing of the driver element to the disc base body shown in Fig. 2,

[0035] Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a disc base body with a driver element,

[0036] Fig. 5 is a frontal view of the disc body shown in Fig. 4 with the driver element, and

[0037] Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of a disc base body with driver elements.

[0038] A loading and / or dispensing device 12 shown in Figure 1 is designed to simultaneously pick up several bottles parallel to one another and feed them to a bottle cleaning system. The cleaned bottles are then removed by means of another, identically constructed loading and / or dispensing device 12.

[0039] In order to be able to move the bottles from a first position, in particular a standing position, into a second position, in particular a lying position for introducing the bottles into cleaning cells of the bottle cleaning system, the loading and / or dispensing device 12 has a disk shaft with a plurality of loading and / or dispensing disks 1 arranged parallel to one another on a disk shaft axis.

[0040] Each of the loading and / or delivery discs 1 is designed to surround the disc shaft axis over its entire circumference, with each loading and / or delivery disc 1 being formed from a plurality of disc segments. Each loading and / or delivery disc 1, and in particular each disc segment, has a single disc base body 2 made of stainless steel and, on one side, a receiving area 14 with fastening elements 15 for rotationally fixed and immovable arrangement on a disc shaft axis.

[0041] A driver element 3 is arranged on each disc base body 2, which is designed to move the bottle in direct contact with the bottle surface. In a first embodiment shown in Figures 2 and 3, the driver element 3, formed as a driver finger, is pushed positively onto a section of the disc base body 2 and secured by two identical damping elements 13. The damping elements 13 are made of a highly elastic polymer and thus enable a dampened arrangement of the driver element 3 on the disc base body 2.In addition, further damping is possible in that a contact surface 10 of the driver element 3, which comes into direct contact with a bottle to be displaced, is formed from a material with a higher elasticity than the material of the remaining sections of the driver element 3, wherein the driver element 3 is then preferably manufactured by injection molding from at least two different materials.

[0042] A second embodiment, shown in Figures 4 and 5, differs from the first embodiment essentially in that the driver element 3, which is pushed over a section of the disc base body 2, is secured by means of two screws 5, 11 or corresponding screw bolts, wherein at least one of the screws 11 is preferably made of an elastic material to enable damping. Alternatively or additionally, the material of the driver element 3 surrounding at least one of the screws 5, 11 can also have a higher elasticity than the material of the remaining sections of the driver element 3.

[0043] In a third embodiment of a loading and / or dispensing disc 1, shown in Figure 6, a driver element 3 formed as a finger and a driver element 3 formed as a back are arranged on each disc base body 2. Each driver element 3 is initially secured to the disc base body 2 by means of an inelastic screw 5, wherein the screw 5 forms a pivot point 4 of the arrangement. In addition, each driver element 3 is also secured to the disc base body 2 by means of a further, positive-locking and screwless connection 7. For this purpose, a web 8 of the disc base body 2 is pressed into a corresponding elongated hole 9 in the driver element 3, thereby creating a resilient or damped pivotable connection between the driver element 3 and the disc base body 2.The driver element 3 can be formed from a single material, wherein this material preferably has an elasticity adapted to the desired damping, whereby, on the one hand, the positive connection 7 and, on the other hand, the contact between the bottle and the contact surface 10 of the driver element 3 are subject to the damping resulting from the elasticity of the material. Furthermore, it is also conceivable to form the area of ​​the contact surface 10 and / or the elongated hole 9 from a material with a different, in particular a higher, elasticity.

[0044] List of reference symbols

[0045] I Loading and / or unloading disc 2 Disc base body

[0046] 3 Driver element

[0047] 4 Pivot point

[0048] 5 screw

[0049] 6 screw connection 7 positive connection

[0050] 8 bridge

[0051] 9 slotted hole

[0052] 10 Contact surface

[0053] II elastic screw 12 loading and / or dispensing device

[0054] 13 Damping element

[0055] 14 Recording area

[0056] 15 Fastening element

Claims

Claims Loading and / or dispensing disc (1) for displacing a container from a first position to a second position, in particular for a container cleaning machine, with a disc base body (2) for arranging the loading and / or dispensing disc (1) on a disc shaft axis and at least one driver element (3) arranged on the disc base body (2) for guiding the container during displacement, characterized in that the driver element (3) has a damping. Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to claim 1, characterized in that the damping takes place via the fastening of the driver element (3) to the disc base body (2). Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the driver element (3) on the disc base body (2) via a fixed pivot point (4) and is mounted in a damped manner, wherein the mounting in the region of the pivot point (4) is effected by means of a screw (5). Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the arrangement of the driver element (3) on the disc base body (2) is effected by means of at least one screw connection (6) and at least one further, positive and screwless connection (7). Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a positively locking fixing of the driver element (3) to the disc base body (2) takes place by a web (8) protruding from the disc base body (2) being pressed into an elongated hole (9) in the driver element (3). Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the damping of a driver element (3) which is positively locked by means of an elongated hole (9) takes place via the material elasticity of the driver element (3) in the region of the elongated hole (9).Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one damping element is arranged in the region of a positive fastening of the driver element (3) to the disc base body (2), wherein the at least one damping element is preferably formed from an elastic material and is arranged between the web (8) of the disc base body (2) and the elongated hole (9) of the driver element (3). Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the driver element (3) for damping is formed in a sandwich construction and / or in two sections from different materials, wherein one material in at least one damping region has a higher elasticity than the remaining material of the driver element (3). Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the damping of the driver element (3) is achieved via a section of elastic material in the region of a contact surface (10) for a container. Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the driver element (3) has a damping region with a higher elasticity of the material for damping in a central region between a contact surface (10) for a container and the region for arrangement on the disc base body (2) and / or surrounding an elongated hole (9) of the driver element (3).Loading and / or dispensing disc for displacing a container according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the driver element (3) can be pushed onto a region of the disc base body (2) and is secured by means of two screws (5, 11), wherein at least one of the screws (11) is formed from an elastic material so that appropriate damping is achieved. A disc shaft for a loading and / or dispensing device (12) for container handling, in particular for container cleaning, with a plurality of loading and / or dispensing discs (1) arranged on a common disc shaft axis according to at least one of claims 1-11.

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