Apparatus for treating containers, and method for locating faults in an apparatus for treating containers

Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus (1) for treating containers, in particular a container filling and / or container treatment apparatus, and to a method for locating faults in an apparatus for treating containers. To provide an apparatus for treating containers, in particular a container filling and / or container treatment apparatus, and a method which enable a particularly simple and fast determination of a fault location and hence reduce the outage times when a fault has arisen such that the operating costs of the apparatus overall can be reduced, provision is made for the apparatus according to the invention for treating containers to comprise at least one device for transporting (2) the containers along a transport path and / or at least one device for treating the containers at at least one treatment position, and a plurality of changeable optical indicators (3) in each case arranged along the transport path and / or at a treatment position and serving to indicate faults during operation, directly at the respective fault location, wherein each changeable optical indicator is controlled by an apparatus controller (4) of the apparatus for treating containers, in such a way that the fault location is indicated directly by means of the respective changeable optical indicator.

Description

[0001] Description

[0002] Container treatment plant and method for locating faults in a container treatment plant

[0003] The invention relates to a container treatment plant, in particular a container filling and / or container treatment plant, and to a method for locating faults in such a container treatment plant.

[0004] Container treatment systems, in particular container filling and / or container treatment systems, are known in a wide variety of designs from the prior art and are used particularly in the food industry to clean containers and subsequently fill them with food and beverages. In the beverage industry, for example, it is common practice for used reusable containers or even new containers to first be cleaned and inspected, then transported to a filling system, filled, labeled and then either combined into bundles or placed in crates. In addition, the containers can also be thermally treated, for example pasteurized. In principle, however, numerous container treatment steps during its manufacture, cleaning and / or filling with food are each carried out using a dedicated part of the container treatment system.

[0005] Accordingly, container handling systems are typically very large, complex and comprise numerous different components and assemblies. This makes it difficult to quickly and reliably locate the fault location in the system when a malfunction occurs. To do this, a system operator must first identify the part of the system where the fault occurred based on an error code displayed on a system control system. They must then find the part of the system where the fault occurred and finally the operator must identify the specific location of the part of the system where the fault exists. This can be very time-consuming, especially in systems that handle several dozen containers at the same time. Especially for inexperienced or not highly qualified system operators, it is sometimes impossible to identify the fault location and get there within an acceptable amount of time.

[0006] The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a plant for container treatment, in particular a container filling and / or container treatment plant, as well as a method which enable a particularly simple and rapid determination of a fault location and thus reduce the downtimes due to a fault occurring, so that the overall operating costs of the plant can be reduced.

[0007] The object is achieved according to the invention by a container treatment system according to claim 1 and by a method for locating defects in such a container treatment system according to claim 11. Advantageous developments of the invention are specified in the dependent claims.

[0008] The container treatment plant according to the invention, in particular a container filling and / or container treatment plant, has at least one device for transporting the containers along a transport route and / or at least one device for treating the containers at at least one treatment position as well as a plurality of changeable optical displays, each arranged along the transport route and / or each at a treatment position, for displaying errors in the operating sequence directly at the respective error location, wherein each changeable optical display is controlled by a plant control system of the container treatment plant in such a way that the error location is displayed directly by means of the respective changeable optical display.

[0009] The method according to the invention for locating faults in a container treatment system, in particular in a container filling and / or container treatment system, with at least one device for transporting the containers along a transport route and / or a device for treating the containers at at least one treatment position as well as several variable optical displays, each arranged along the transport route and / or each at a treatment position, for displaying errors in the operating sequence directly at the respective fault location, comprises as method steps firstly a detection of a fault in the container treatment system, a determination of the fault location, in particular in the area of ​​the transport route and / or a treatment position, and an assignment of the fault location to a variable optical display arranged at the fault location or in the area of ​​the fault location,wherein finally, the variable optical display arranged at the fault location or in the area of ​​the fault location is controlled, in particular by means of a system control of the container treatment system, to generate a light signal.

[0010] The inventors have recognized that a variable optical display according to the invention makes it particularly easy to indicate the fault location very quickly and precisely, thus enabling a system operator to locate a fault and reach it quickly and precisely. The resulting time savings in troubleshooting can be significant, especially in very large systems. Accordingly, a fault can be identified and rectified very quickly, so that the operational interruption associated with the fault can be kept as short as possible. This leads to higher system utilization and reduced downtime.

[0011] In addition, the system operator can also be easily informed about the cause of the fault, the type or severity of the fault, and / or the urgency of troubleshooting at the fault location using the adjustable visual display. Ideally, this information can be provided to the operator exclusively at the fault location, eliminating the need to consult another information source, such as a central control display typically located far away from the fault location. Furthermore, troubleshooting and, if necessary, troubleshooting are particularly easy for a system operator who generally lacks the necessary specialist knowledge to quickly locate the fault.

[0012] The container treatment plant according to the invention can in principle be any machine or plant comprising several interacting machines and / or machine parts that produces, processes and / or uses at least one container and preferably numerous containers simultaneously, for example sorting, testing, cleaning and / or filling them. The container treatment plant preferably has a container cleaning machine, in particular a bottle washing plant, and / or a device for thermal treatment, for example a pasteurizer, for containers to be filled. In addition, the container treatment plant has at least one device for transport or a conveyor, in particular a conveyor belt, a conveyor chain, a conveyor star and / or conveyor gripper, wherein particularly preferably at least in part of the plant a transport of the containers takes place before, during and / or after the treatment.Particularly preferably, a transport device is arranged between several system components for container treatment. Particularly in bottle filling and / or bottle cleaning systems, it is common for the respective container to be continuously transported during cleaning and / or filling. Generally, the containers are transported along a transport path, which can be single-row, multi-row, or random mass flow.

[0013] The treatment of the containers according to the invention takes place at at least one treatment position of the system, wherein several different treatments of each container can take place at a respective treatment position in the container treatment system. The treatment position can be a location of a single container or, in particular when numerous containers are treated in parallel, a section for the simultaneous and / or parallel treatment of several containers. When treating moving or transported containers, the treatment location can also be a section of the transport route, in particular a section in which a specific treatment of the container, such as aligning, pouring in a cleaning fluid, filling with a filling material, heating the container or any other desired treatment, takes place.The container to be treated can initially be any container for holding a liquid or a solid, and is preferably intended for holding a food product, and particularly preferably a beverage. Although the container can also be a disposable container, the container is preferably a reusable container. The container can also be made of any material, with containers made of glass or plastic being preferred. The container is particularly preferably a reusable bottle made of glass or plastic, for example, PET.

[0014] According to the invention, the variable optical display is intended to visually indicate the location of the fault in the system to a user. The display can be provided either by a light signal or by another, particularly mechanical, change to the variable optical display, for example, by means of a movable display element. The display is preferably provided by means of at least one illuminant, and particularly preferably, the variable optical display is purely a light display and / or not a display or screen. Likewise, the variable optical display is preferably not designed to display numbers and / or letters.

[0015] The variable optical display can comprise a single light source, for example a single LED or a single LED module, or it can be formed from a plurality of light sources, in particular LEDs, initially arranged in any desired manner. Accordingly, the indication of a fault location can be effected by means of a variable optical display formed as an LED fault display, using a single LED or by means of a segment or a group of LEDs. The variable optical display can in principle be used or formed exclusively to indicate the respective fault location. Preferably, however, the type, severity and / or cause of the fault and / or the urgency of troubleshooting at the fault location can also be indicated by means of the variable optical display.In addition, the variable optical display can also be used, regardless of the occurrence of an error, to indicate the current operating status of all components when the system is switched on and / or off and / or during operation, although operation exclusively for indicating errors and malfunctions is preferred. Accordingly, an indication and in particular a light signal of the variable optical display is preferably only provided when an error occurs, so that the location of the error, as the only appropriately illuminated position in the system, can be found particularly quickly and reliably by an operator. In addition to indicating errors, the variable optical display can also be used to indicate the need for cleaning and / or maintenance of individual components or assemblies of the system.

[0016] According to the invention, the variable optical display is arranged at a position along the container transport path and / or at a treatment position. The variable optical display is preferably arranged directly on a component of the device for transporting and / or on a component of the device for treating the containers, in particular directly at the error locations where errors in the operating sequence most frequently or most likely occur and / or where user intervention is typically necessary. Furthermore, several variable optical displays are preferably arranged along a container transport path.The container treatment system, or a part of this system, can also be enclosed by a housing and have an inlet and an outlet for containers to be treated. Preferably, at least one variable optical display, particularly preferably in addition to at least one further variable optical display, is arranged in the region of this inlet and / or outlet. Furthermore, it is preferred that, when transporting containers in multiple rows, several variable optical displays are arranged next to one another and / or parallel to one another in the region of each transport row.

[0017] An error in the operating process to be indicated by means of the variable optical display can in principle be any error in the container treatment system. However, the error to be indicated is preferably an error that can be assigned to one or a few error positions, so that a local display for a user is useful. In addition, the error can be a detected error in the container or an error in the container itself, for example contamination or damage to the container, an error caused by the container, for example incorrect positioning of the container or a malfunction of the system due to a defect in the container, and / or an error in the treatment of the container or in a part of the container treatment system itself, for example a jammed part of the system.

[0018] According to the invention, each variable optical display is controlled by a system control of the container treatment system. The system control can be provided exclusively for controlling the container treatment system or only a part thereof and / or can be arranged directly on or in the area of ​​the container treatment system. Likewise, the system control can also be part of a higher-level control unit which, in addition to the container treatment system, also controls other systems or machines, in particular those upstream or downstream of the container treatment system. In particular, the system control can be part of a central control unit of an entire system or of the entire operation. The system control is fundamentally suitable for controlling at least one variable optical display and in particular all variable optical displays and / or the container treatment system.Likewise, the system control is designed at least to receive signals relating to errors in the operating sequence of the container treatment system and preferably of an overall system comprising the container treatment system.

[0019] According to the invention, the system controller controls the variable optical display, which means that the variable optical display is not activated directly by the operation of a part of the system, but rather when the system controller has detected a fault and subsequently activates an output via the variable optical display. The system controller can control the individual variable optical displays, and preferably even individual display elements, lamps, or LEDs, or at least groups of display elements, lamps, or LEDs of the variable optical display, separately and independently of one another in order to indicate different fault locations and preferably also to generate different light patterns on a variable optical display.Such light patterns of a variable optical display can be constant over the course of the display, for example, a permanently switched-on light source, or they can change over time, for example, in the form of sequentially flashing through several light sources of a variable optical display or flashing of some or all of the light sources. According to the invention, the error is indicated by the variable optical display at the error location or at least in the vicinity of the error location.

[0020] If no fault indicator is located directly at the fault location, the nearest variable optical indicator or the variable optical indicators located on either side of the fault location, particularly in the direction of movement of a container to be treated, are preferably determined, particularly in the method according to the invention, and subsequently controlled by the system control system. Furthermore, it is preferred that the fault be indicated by a variable optical indicator according to the invention exclusively at the fault location or in the vicinity of the fault location, so that the operator is guided directly to the fault location.

[0021] A preferred embodiment of the container treatment system according to the invention provides that several transport positions of the container and / or several treatment positions of the system are provided one behind the other and / or parallel to one another along the transport route and that at each transport position and / or at each treatment position one, in particular exactly one changeable optical display is arranged so that the respective error position can be displayed precisely and immediately when an error occurs.Furthermore, it is also conceivable to arrange a changeable optical display exclusively at each treatment position and / or at each transport position of a part of the system, for example over the entire circumference of a transport system, over the entire length of a conveyor, at each treatment position of a system for the parallel, multi-row treatment of containers and / or at each position of the system or part of the system where a treatment step on the container is started, carried out and / or connected. Furthermore, a preferred embodiment of a system for container treatment according to the invention is one in which all changeable optical displays are arranged directly on components or assemblies of the device for transporting the containers along the transport route and / or directly on components or assemblies of the device for treating the containers at at least one treatment position and at the same time at the respective defect location.

[0022] Although the fault location can be indicated in any desired manner, it is preferred that each variable optical display comprise at least one illuminating means for generating a variable optical signal. The optical signal can be varied in its luminous intensity and / or in the wavelength of the emitted light. The simplest possible optical change is a change between an on and an off state of the illuminating means. The illuminating means can be configured in any desired manner, with preference being given to the illuminating means comprising at least one LED, and particularly preferably being an LED.

[0023] In an advantageous development of the container treatment system according to the invention, at least some of the variable optical displays, and preferably all of the variable optical displays, are formed as an LED strip running along or across the transport path and / or extending over the treatment positions. If the container treatment system or the container transport device is designed to be continuous, in particular as a container star or transport star, the variable optical display is preferably also formed as a continuous LED strip, and in particular as an LED strip that completely surrounds the container treatment system or the container transport device. Particularly preferably, the LED strip forms an endlessly continuous LED band.Alternatively or additionally, an LED strip preferably extends over at least a portion of the container transport path, and particularly preferably over the entire length. Furthermore, an LED strip preferably has 30 LEDs per meter, and particularly preferably 60 LEDs per meter.

[0024] A particularly advantageous development of the container treatment system according to the invention is one in which the variable optical display or a plurality of variable optical displays together, and in particular a light source or LED strip, is formed as a segmented light strip and preferably consists of segments arranged next to one another and / or formed in a modular manner, whereby an exchange or modification of a part of the variable optical display and in particular of the light strip is possible in a particularly simple manner. Each segment of the light strip can have a single light source, in particular a single LED, or a group of light sources or LEDs. Each segment is preferably formed as an exchangeable module and in particular as a module that can be connected or coupled to adjacently arranged segments. For this purpose, each segment preferably has connection elements on two opposite sides.In addition, each segment preferably forms an independent, changeable optical display.

[0025] Although the individual lamps or LEDs of a variable optical display can, in principle, be designed and controlled in any way, it is preferred that individual lamps or LEDs and / or groups of lamps or LEDs and / or segments of a light bar be specifically addressable. Preferably, the lamps or LEDs are digital LEDs, or the segments each have a microchip or the like for digitally addressing the segment and accordingly for controlling the connected lamps or LEDs.For hygienic reasons, in an optional, preferred embodiment, the variable optical display, the LED strip, the segmented light strip and / or each modular segment of a variable optical display is encapsulated and, for this purpose, particularly preferably has either an at least partially transparent housing and / or is at least partially, preferably completely, encapsulated in a transparent material.

[0026] In addition, an embodiment of the container treatment system according to the invention is preferred in which at each transport position of at least part of the system and preferably of the entire system and / or at each treatment position of at least part of the system and preferably of the entire system and / or at each possible fault location of at least part of the system and preferably of the entire system, exactly one segment of a light bar is arranged as a variable optical display or each segment extends exactly over the length of a transport position and / or a treatment position.

[0027] An advantageous development of the container treatment system according to the invention provides that each segment has a row of several lamps or LEDs. Alternatively, a design as a matrix comprising more than one row and more than one column of lamps or LEDs is also conceivable. A row of lamps or LEDs is understood to be an arrangement of lamps or LEDs along a line, in particular a straight line, and / or at the same distance from one another. In contrast, a matrix of lamps or LEDs generally extends in at least two spatial directions, with an arrangement in a grid being preferred, in particular with a constant distance between the lamps or LEDs in the rows and / or in the columns. The number of lamps or LEDs in the rows and columns can be identical or unequal, for example a 2 x 3 grid or a 3 x 5 grid.

[0028] The illuminants, and in particular LEDs, of the variable optical display can generally be single-color or multi-color, with multi-color illuminants or LEDs, in particular RGB LEDs, being preferred. Most preferably, the LEDs are RGBW LEDs or formed as a module consisting of a colored LED and at least one white LED. A design exclusively or additionally with a dual-white LED is also conceivable. Accordingly, a preferred embodiment of the system according to the invention is one in which the variable optical display has multi-color LEDs and is configured to output differently colored signals for different errors.The color of the changeable optical display and / or a multi-colored pattern of the changeable optical display can be used to communicate not only the location of the fault, but also further information on the type and cause of the fault and / or the actions to be taken by an operator of the system to rectify the fault and / or the responsibility of an operator or technician for rectifying the fault. For example, different colors can be assigned to different operators, particularly depending on their expertise or specialization in troubleshooting. However, corresponding information can be communicated not only by color, but alternatively or additionally by a pattern of several lamps or

[0029] LEDs of the variable optical display and / or by a time-varying light sequence of the variable optical display. Finally, a preferred development of the method according to the invention for locating errors in a container treatment system provides that, in order to control the variable optical display and to generate the light signal, an error code is read from the system control of the container treatment system and is converted into a light signal specific to this error code, so that the type and / or cause of the error and / or the necessary action to rectify the error can be immediately recognized from the specific light signal generated. Thus, each error code preferably corresponds to a display pattern and / or a display color.

[0030] An embodiment of the system according to the invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawing. The figure shows:

[0031] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a container treatment plant.

[0032] In an example of a container treatment system 1 in the form of a bottle cleaning system shown in Figure 1, a series of variable optical displays in the form of an LED light bar, designed as LED error indicators 3, is arranged on a housing 5 of the bottle cleaning system in the area of ​​an inlet 6 for containers to be cleaned. The containers to be cleaned are fed to the bottle cleaning system and inserted into a transport device 2 into a bottle cell, each of which is inserted into a bottle cell. Numerous containers are transported parallel to one another in bottle cells.

[0033] The LED light bar is made up of individual segments arranged next to one another, with each segment assigned to a bottle cell in a row of the transport device 2, so that a light signal can be emitted if an error occurs when inserting the container into the respective bottle cell. For this purpose, each segment has an RGB LED that can be illuminated in different colors depending on the type of error.

[0034] When an error is detected, a system control system 4 controls the respective segment, i.e. the respective LED error display 3 at the error location, and in doing so controls a light signal specific to the respective error code, so that a user of the system 1 for container treatment can immediately recognize the error location and also receives information on the type of error.

[0035] A further possible embodiment of the invention can, for example, also provide for an LED strip to be arranged circumferentially on a machine of a filling system, with each segment of the LED strip forming an LED error indicator 3 and being arranged in an area for receiving a container. Preferably, the containers are transported during filling by means of a circumferential transport system, with the LED error indicators 3 then extending evenly over the circumference of the transport system. Once again, by controlling the respective LED error indicator 3 by means of a system control system 4, the location and severity of the error can be precisely visualized.

[0036] List of reference symbols 1 Container treatment plant

[0037] 2 Device for transport

[0038] 3 changeable optical displays

[0039] 4 Plant control

[0040] 5 Housing 6 Inlet

Claims

Claims 1. Plant (1) for container treatment, in particular a container filling and / or container treatment plant, with at least one device for transporting (2) the containers along a transport route and / or for treating the containers at at least one treatment position and a plurality of changeable optical displays (3), each arranged along the transport route and / or each at a treatment position, for displaying errors in the operating sequence directly at the respective error location, wherein each changeable optical display (3) is controlled by a plant control system (4) of the plant (1) for container treatment in such a way that the error location is displayed directly by means of the respective changeable optical display (3).

2. Plant for container treatment according to claim 1, characterized in that along the transport route several transport positions of the container and / or several treatment positions are provided on the plant (1) and at each transport position and / or at each treatment position exactly one changeable optical display (3) is arranged.

3. Container treatment plant according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that all changeable optical displays (3) are arranged directly on components or assemblies of the device for transporting (2) the containers along the transport route and / or directly on components or assemblies of the device for treating the containers at at least one treatment position at the respective defect location.

4. Container treatment plant according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each variable optical display (3) has at least one luminous means for generating a variable optical signal.

5. Container treatment plant according to claim 4, characterized in that each illuminant of the variable optical display (3) is an LED.

6. Container treatment system according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the variable optical displays (3) are formed as an LED strip running along the transport path and / or extending over the treatment positions.

7. Container treatment system according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the variable optical display (3) and in particular an LED strip is formed as a segmented light strip and is preferably formed from segments arranged next to one another.

8. Container treatment plant according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at each transport position and / or at each treatment position and / or at each possible defect location, exactly one segment of a light bar is arranged as a variable optical display (3).

9. Container treatment system according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each segment has a row of several LEDs.

10. Container treatment system according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the variable optical display (3) has multi-colored lighting means and is designed to output differently colored signals for different defects.

11. Method for locating faults in a plant (1) for container treatment, in particular in a container filling and / or container treatment plant, comprising at least one device for transporting (2) the containers along a transport route and / or for treating the containers at at least one treatment position and a plurality of variable optical displays (3) arranged along the transport route and / or at a treatment position, for displaying faults in the operating sequence directly at the respective fault location, comprising the steps: Detecting a fault in the container treatment system (1), determining the location of the fault, in particular in the area of ​​the transport route and / or a treatment position, Assigning the fault location to a changeable optical display (3) arranged at the fault location, Controlling the variable optical display (3) arranged at the fault location, in particular by means of a system control (4) of the system (1) for container treatment, to generate a light signal.

12. Method for locating errors in a container treatment system according to claim 11, characterized in that, in order to control the variable optical display (3), an error code is read from the system control (4) of the container treatment system (1) and is converted into a light signal specific to this error code, so that the type and / or cause of the error and / or the necessary action to rectify the error can be immediately recognized on the basis of the specific light signal generated.

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