Packaging device

Abstract

To provide a packaging device capable of preventing damage to agricultural products.SOLUTION: A packaging device comprises a support 33 which is in a first state and a second state by rotation around a rotational center axis L1, and first rotational drive means 38 which rotates the support 33 around the rotational center axis L1. The support 33 supports an agricultural product W in the first state, and has a support portion 91 which discharges the agricultural product W in the second state. The rotational center axis L1 of the support 33 is located on an anti-delivery side relative to a center point P of the support 91 when viewed from the side in the first state. The support 33 rotates on the basis of a retraction operation of the first rotational drive means 38 to become the first state, and rotates on the basis of an extension operation of the first rotational drive means 38 to become the second state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a packaging device for packaging agricultural produce with a packaging sheet. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a packaging device as described in, for example, Patent Document 1 below is known.

[0003] This conventional packaging device is equipped with a support that can be placed in a first state (loading position) or a second state (delivering position) by rotation about a rotation fulcrum (support shaft). In the first state, this support supports the agricultural product in the loading position, but in the second state, the support has a dish-shaped support portion that is cross-shaped in plan view and delivers the packaged agricultural product. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2012-25426 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the conventional packaging device described above, the pivot point of the support is located directly below the centre point of the support part when viewed from the side when the support is in the first state, so that the agricultural produce is susceptible to impacts when being sent out from the support part and may be damaged.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned points, and has an object to provide a packaging device that can prevent damage to agricultural produce. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The packaging device of the present invention is a packaging device for packaging agricultural produce in a packaging sheet, and is equipped with a support that can be set to at least a first state and a second state by rotation about a rotation fulcrum, and has a support part that supports the agricultural produce in the first state but sends out the agricultural produce in the second state, and a rotation drive means for rotating the support about the rotation fulcrum, wherein, in the first state of the support, the rotation fulcrum is located on the opposite side to the sending-out side of the center point of the support part in a side view, and the support rotates to the first state based on the contraction action of the rotation drive means, and rotates to the second state based on the expansion action of the rotation drive means.

[0008] The packaging device according to the present invention is a packaging device for packaging agricultural produce in a packaging sheet, comprising: a first lifting body; a second lifting body that is mounted on the first lifting body so as to be able to rise and fall; a support that is mounted on the second lifting body so as to be able to rotate about a rotation fulcrum and that is set to at least a first state and a second state by rotation about the rotation fulcrum, and that has a support part that supports the agricultural produce in the first state and delivers the agricultural produce in the second state; and a support that is mounted on the first lifting body so as to be able to rotate and deliver the agricultural produce supported by the support part. The support body is provided with a holding body that holds the support, a first rotation drive means that rotates the support body about the rotation fulcrum relative to the second lifting body, and a second rotation drive means that rotates the holding body relative to the first lifting body, wherein the rotation fulcrum is located on the opposite side to the center point of the support part in a side view when the support body is in the first state, and the support body rotates to the first state based on the contraction action of the first rotation drive means and rotates to the second state based on the extension action of the first rotation drive means. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, damage to agricultural crops can be prevented. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a front perspective view of a packaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2]FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a front view of a main part of the packaging device (with the first lifting body in the raised position). [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a front view of a main part of the packaging device (with the first lifting body in the lowered position). [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a view showing a first lifting and lowering drive means of the packaging device. [Figure 7] 1A is a rear view of the main parts of the packaging device (with the second lifting body in a lower position), and FIG. 1B is a rear view of the main parts of the packaging device (with the second lifting body in an upper position). [Figure 8] FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the operation of the packaging device. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram following FIG. 12. [Figure 14] 13, and FIG. 14B is an explanatory diagram of a comparative example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0012] In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a packaging device, which is a lettuce packaging machine (vegetable packaging machine) that packages spherical agricultural produce W, such as lettuce, using, for example, a rectangular packaging sheet S of predetermined dimensions.

[0013] In other words, the packaging device 1 packages agricultural produce W that has been manually supplied to the inside through a supply opening 2 by an operator in a packaging sheet S, and discharges the packaged agricultural produce W to the outside through a discharge opening 3.

[0014] The packaging sheet S that encases and covers the entire outer surface of the agricultural produce (packaged item) W is a transparent sheet (film) made of synthetic resin, which is obtained, for example, by cutting a predetermined size from a sheet roll (not shown). The sheet roll is a long continuous sheet wound into a roll, and is placed on a roll setting table 4.

[0015] As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the packaging device 1 includes a device main body 11 having a box-like shape with an outer shape of a substantially rectangular parallelepiped.

[0016] A rectangular upper supply opening 13 is formed in the upper plate 12 of the device body 11. A horizontal support plate 14 is provided below the upper plate 12 to support the unfolded packaging sheet S in a placed state. A circular lower supply opening 15 is formed in the support plate 14 facing the upper supply opening 13, and a part (a part on the outer periphery) of the lower supply opening 15 is covered in an openable and closable manner by resin plates 16 which are a plurality of elastic plates that can be elastically deformed. The upper supply opening 13 and the lower supply opening 15 form a supply opening 2 through which an operator manually supplies the agricultural products W from above into the device body 11.

[0017] A rectangular discharge outlet 3 is formed on the rear panel 18 of the device body 11. From this discharge outlet 3, the packaged agricultural crops W wrapped in the packaging sheet S are discharged to the outside of the device body 11. The agricultural crops W discharged from the discharge outlet 3 are transported to the next process by a transport means such as a conveyor. Also, for example, the agricultural crops W discharged from the discharge outlet 3 may be stored in a container.

[0018] A rectangular surplus portion discharge outlet 20 is formed on the right plate 19 of the device body 11. The surplus portion S1 of the packaging sheet S is discharged from this surplus portion discharge outlet 20 to the outside of the device body 11. The device body 11 is provided with a manual operation switch 21, a setting panel 22, etc.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 3, the packaging device 1 is equipped with a receiving section 25 that receives the agricultural produce W from the supply port 2 via a packaging sheet S and sends the packaged agricultural produce W to the discharge port 3 side, and a sliding section 26 that slides toward the unpackaged agricultural produce W received by the receiving section 25 and performs a predetermined process such as thermal welding.

[0020] Furthermore, the packaging device 1 is equipped with an air injection unit 27 that injects compressed air onto the excess portion S1 of the packaging sheet S so that the excess portion S1 is discharged from the excess portion discharge outlet 20, a sheet pull-out unit 28 that pulls out the continuous sheet from the sheet roll onto the support plate 14, and a sheet cutting unit 29 that cuts the continuous sheet pulled out by the sheet pull-out unit 28 to obtain a packaging sheet S of a specified size.

[0021] As shown in Figures 4 to 9, the receiving section 25 comprises a guide body 30 erected on the bottom 17 of the device main body 11, a first lifting body 31 that can be raised and lowered and is guided by the guide body 30, a second lifting body 32 that is mounted on the first lifting body 31 and can be raised and lowered, a support body 33 that is rotatably mounted on the second lifting body 32 about a left-right pivot center axis (rotation fulcrum) L1 and supports the underside of the crop W in a placed state from below via the packaging sheet S, and a pair of left and right holding bodies (clamping bodies) 34 that are rotatably mounted on the first lifting body 31 about a front-to-rear pivot center axis (rotation fulcrum) L2 and hold (clamp) both the left and right side surfaces of the crop W supported by the support body 33 from both the left and right sides via the packaging sheet S.

[0022] The receiving section 25 also includes a first lifting and lowering drive means 36 for raising and lowering the first lifting body 31 relative to the guide body 30, a second lifting and lowering drive means 37 for raising and lowering the second lifting body 32 relative to the first lifting body 31, a first rotation drive means 38 for rotating the support body 33 relative to the second lifting body 32 about the rotation center axis L1, and a second rotation drive means 39 for rotating (opening and closing) the left and right holding bodies 34 relative to the first lifting body 31 about the rotation center axis L2.

[0023] The guide body 30, which guides the first lifting body 31 in the vertical direction, has a first guide member 51 in the form of a round bar and elongated in the vertical direction to guide the cylindrical portion 41 of the first lifting body 31, and a second guide member 52 in the form of a U-shaped frame and elongated in the vertical direction to guide the roller portion 42 of the first lifting body 31.

[0024] The first lifting drive means 36 has a motor (drive source) 55 and an endless chain 56 that rotates based on the power from the motor 55. The chain 56 is stretched around upper and lower sprockets 57 that face each other at a distance, and the tension of the chain 56 can be adjusted by a tension adjustment means 58. The tension adjustment means 58 has a tightener 60 that can rotate around a support shaft 59, and the lower sprocket 57 is attached to the tip of the tightener 60. A connecting rod 61 is connected to the base end of the tightener 60, and the connecting rod 61 is urged upward by an adjustment spring 62. In addition, an attachment plate 63 is attached midway along the chain 56, and the attachment portion 43 of the first lifting body 31 is attached to the attachment plate 63.

[0025] The first lifting body 31 is raised to an elevated position relative to the guide body 30 by the rotation of the chain 56 in one direction based on the power from the motor 55 (see Figure 4), and lowered to a lowered position relative to the guide body 30 according to the size (height) of the crop W by the rotation of the chain in the other direction based on the power from the motor 55 (see Figure 5).

[0026] Here, the raised position is a fixed position that is determined in advance regardless of the size of the crop W. On the other hand, the lowered position is an arbitrary position (a corresponding lowered position corresponding to the size of the crop) that is determined according to the size of the crop W. That is, for example, based on information from a sensor (not shown) that is a detection means for detecting the crop W, the control means 50 determines the lowered position according to the size of the crop W. Note that the control means 50 controls each driving source (motor, air cylinder, etc.) based on information from, for example, sensors, switches, etc.

[0027] As shown in Figure 7 etc., the second lifting body 32 has a plurality of guided parts 65 that can be raised and lowered and are guided by a plurality of guiding parts 44 (e.g., two on the left and right) of the first lifting body 31, and the upper ends of these vertically elongated, rod-shaped guided parts 65 are attached to a horizontal base plate part 66.

[0028] Second lifting body 32 has a U-shaped frame portion 67 that is vertically movable relative to base plate portion 66, and support body 33 is attached to this U-shaped frame portion 67 so as to be rotatable about central rotation axis L1. C-shaped frame portion 67 is elastically supported by a buffer spring 68 that serves as a buffer means for absorbing shock to crops W when crops W are placed on support body 33 (when crops are set on the support body), and an inner guide pin 69 of buffer spring 68 is slidably inserted into a cylindrical buffer guide portion 70.

[0029] The second lifting and lowering drive means 37 has a lifting and lowering cylinder (drive source) 71 which is an expandable and contractible fluid pressure cylinder. In other words, the second lifting and lowering drive means 37 is composed only of the lifting and lowering cylinder 71. The lifting and lowering cylinder 71 has a cylinder body 72 attached to the first lifting body 31, and a rod 73 which moves in and out of the cylinder body 72. The tip of the rod 73 is attached to the base plate portion 66 of the second lifting and lowering body 32.

[0030] The second lifting body 32 is lowered to a lower position relative to the first lifting body 31 by the contraction of the lifting cylinder 71 (see FIG. 7(a)), and is raised to an upper position relative to the first lifting body 31 by the extension of the lifting cylinder 71 (see FIG. 7(b)). In other words, the second lifting body 31 can be raised and lowered relative to the first lifting body 31 so as to accommodate crops W of different sizes, i.e., both the larger crop W shown in FIG. 7(a) and the smaller crop W shown in FIG. 7(b), and this allows the support body 33 to be raised and lowered between an upper position and a lower position relative to the holder 34.

[0031] As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the holding body (clamping body) 34 can be placed in an open state (where the agricultural products are not clamped) or a closed state (where the agricultural products are clamped from both sides) by rotating about the central rotation axis L2 relative to the first lifting body 31.

[0032] In other words, the pair of holders 34 are closed by synchronous movement toward each other (closing operation) based on rotation about the central rotation axis L2, and are open by synchronous movement away from each other (opening operation) based on rotation about the central rotation axis L2.

[0033] The holding body 34 has an L-shaped arm portion 76 that is rotatably mounted on the first lifting body 31 around the central rotation axis L2, a holding portion 77 that is provided at the tip of the upper end of the arm portion 76 and contacts the side of the agricultural product W via the packaging sheet S when the holding body 34 is closed to hold the side, and a roller portion 78 that is provided at the base end of the lower end of the arm portion 76 and contacts a roller contact plate 85 of the second rotation drive means 39 when the holding body 34 is open.

[0034] The holding portion 77 is composed of, for example, a rectangular holding plate 79 and a cushioning material 80 such as a sponge attached to the holding plate 79 so as to cover the surface of the holding plate 79 (at least the surface that comes into contact with the agricultural produce via the packaging sheet).

[0035] The second rotation drive means 39 has an opening / closing cylinder (drive source) 81 which is an expandable and contractible fluid pressure cylinder. The opening / closing cylinder 81 has a cylinder body 82 attached to the first lifting body 31, and a rod 83 which moves in and out of the cylinder body 82. A roller contact plate 85 which lifts the roller part 78 against the biasing force of a closing spring 84 which is a biasing means is attached to the tip of the rod 83. The roller contact plate 85 moves up and down while being guided by a guide pin 86 which extends in the vertical direction.

[0036] A closing spring 84 for closing the holder 34 is installed between the first lifting body 31 and the holder 34. That is, one end of the closing spring 84 is attached to the spring attachment portion 45 of the first lifting body 31, and the other end is attached to the spring attachment portion 46 of the holder 34.

[0037] The holding body 34 rotates about the pivot axis L2 relative to the first lifting body 31 as the opening / closing cylinder 81 extends, thereby entering an open state (see Figure 4), and receives a biasing force (elastic restoring force) from the closing spring 84 as the opening / closing cylinder 81 contracts, causing the holding body 34 to rotate about the pivot axis L2 relative to the first lifting body 31 based on this biasing force, thereby entering a closed state (see Figure 5).

[0038] As shown in FIG. 5, when the holder 34 is switched from the open state to the closed state, the crops W on the support body 33 are clamped from both the left and right sides by the holding portions (clamping portions) 77 of both holders 34 based on the biasing force of the closing spring 84.

[0039] As shown in Figure 8, etc., the support body (placing body) 33 can be placed in a first state (a supporting state in which the agricultural products are supported from below) and a second state (a sending-out state in which the agricultural products are sent out to the side) by rotating about the central rotation axis L1 relative to the second lifting body 32.

[0040] That is, the support 33 is placed in a horizontal first state (a state in which agricultural products are placed) when rotated in one direction (forward) about the central axis L1, and is placed in a tilted second state (a state in which agricultural products are discharged) with the rear lowered when rotated in the other direction (rear) about the central axis L1. The rotation angle θ of the support 33 is an angle less than 90 degrees, for example, 60 degrees.

[0041] In the first state of support 33, support 33 supports the underside of crop W from below in a placed state via packaging sheet S, but in the second state of support 33, it has a dish-shaped support part 91 that sends crop W rearward (sideways) by its own weight, and a downward-projecting mounting part 92 that protrudes downward from support part 91. In other words, support 33 has mounting part 92 that is mounted to second lifting body 32 so as to be rotatable about rotation central axis L1, and support part 91 that is fixed to the upper part of mounting part 92 and supports the underside of crop W.

[0042] The mounting portion 92 has a mounting plate 94 attached to the underside of the support portion 91 by a mounting fixture 93. A pair of left and right opposing plates 95 facing each other at a distance protrude downward from both ends of the mounting plate 94. A cylindrical insertion tube 96 extending in the left-right direction is provided in the center of each opposing plate 95 in the front-rear direction.

[0043] Then, a bolt 97 is inserted into the insertion tube 96, and a nut 98 is screwed onto the bolt 97, whereby the mounting part 92 is attached to the U-shaped frame part 67 of the second lifting body 32 so as to be rotatable about a rotation central axis line L1. A line passing through the axis of the shaft part of this bolt 97 is the rotation central axis line L1.

[0044] Further, the tip of a rod 123 of a rotating cylinder 121 is rotatably attached to the front ends of both opposing plates 95 of the mounting portion 92 via mounting means 100. The mounting means 100 is composed of a bolt 101, a nut 102, and a spacer 103, for example.

[0045] The support portion 91 supports the crop W from below when the support body 33 is in a first state, and sends the crop W to the rear side when the support body 33 is in a second state. The support portion 91 is composed of, for example, a dish-shaped support plate (receiving tray) 105 that is cross-shaped when viewed from above, and a cushioning material 106 such as a sponge attached to the support plate 105 so as to cover the surface of the support plate 105 (at least the surface that comes into contact with the crop via the packaging sheet).

[0046] Here, the support portion 91 has a rectangular plate-shaped central support portion 107 that supports the central portion of the underside of the crop W via the packaging sheet S, and rectangular plate-shaped peripheral support portions 108a, 108b that protrude diagonally upward from the four ends (outer edges) of the front, back, left and right of this central support portion 107 and support four points of the peripheral portion of the underside of the crop W located around the central portion via the packaging sheet S.

[0047] The pair of front and rear peripheral support parts 108a are formed larger than the pair of left and right peripheral support parts 108b. The pair of front and rear peripheral support parts 108a are composed of an inclined portion 109 positioned at an angle relative to the central support part 107, and a tip portion 110 positioned parallel to the central support part 107. The pair of left and right peripheral support parts 108b are composed only of an inclined portion 111 positioned at an angle relative to the central support part 107. As shown in FIG. 8, in the first state of the support 33, the central support part 107 is positioned along a horizontal plane. On the other hand, in the second state of the support 33, the inclined portion 109 of the front peripheral support part 108a is positioned along a vertical plane.

[0048] The first rotation drive means 38 has a rotation cylinder (drive source) 121 which is an expandable and contractible fluid pressure cylinder. In other words, the first rotation drive means 38 is composed only of the rotation cylinder 121. The rotation cylinder 121 has a cylinder body 122 attached to a cylinder attachment portion 124 of the second lifting body 32, and a rod 123 which moves in and out of the cylinder body 122. The tip end of the rod 123 is attached to the attachment portion 92 of the support body 33 via the attachment means 100.

[0049] Then, the support body 33 rotates about the pivot axis L1 relative to the second lifting body 32 as the rotating cylinder 121 contracts, becoming a first state (support state), and rotates about the pivot axis L1 relative to the second lifting body 32 as the rotating cylinder 121 expands, becoming a second state (sending state).

[0050] As shown by the dotted line in Figure 8, when the support 33 rotates around the rotation center axis L1 located at a predetermined height and switches from the first state to the second state, the agricultural crops W on the support 33 are sent (discharged) onto the conveying section 127 of the conveying body 126, and then the agricultural crops W are conveyed by the inclined conveying section 127 toward the discharge outlet 3.

[0051] The conveying section 127 of the conveying body 126, which receives the agricultural products W from the support 33 and conveys them toward the discharge outlet 3, is composed of, for example, a conveying plate 128 that is inclined downward at the rear, and a cushioning material 129 such as a sponge attached to the conveying plate 128 so as to cover the upper surface of the conveying plate 128.

[0052] 8, in side view of support body 33 in the first state, rotation central axis L1 (rotation fulcrum) is located on the anti-sending side of center point (center of tray) P of central support part 107 of support part 91, that is, shifted forward of the front-to-rear center position of central support part 107 in the horizontal position. In other words, rotation central axis L1 is located forward (anti-sending side) of vertical line A that passes through center part (center of gravity) O of spherical agricultural product W supported in a placed state by support part 91, in side view of support body 33 in the first state.

[0053] More specifically, the rotation central axis L1 is located below the anti-sending side portion (front portion) 107a of the central support portion 107 in the horizontal position in a side view of the support body 33 in the first state.

[0054] The distance a between the center point P and the rotation central axis L1 (the amount of deviation from the position directly below the center point P) is, for example, 20 mm (see FIG. 14). The center point P and the rotation central axis L1 are located at the same height (including approximately the same height) in a side view of the support body 33 in the second state.

[0055] In Fig. 9, the cushion material 106 of the support body 33 and the cushion material 80 of the holder 34 are omitted. The three cylinders (the lifting cylinder 71, the opening / closing cylinder 81, and the rotating cylinder 121) shown in Fig. 9 are, for example, air cylinders. In Figs. 5 and 7, the packaging sheet S is omitted.

[0056] 12, the sliding unit 26 has, for example, a slider 131, a clamping plate 132, a cutting blade 133, and a heater 134, as well as blades, a resin plate guide, etc. As shown in Fig. 13, the air injection unit 27 has, for example, a moving frame 136, an air nozzle 137 attached to the moving frame 136, etc.

[0057] Next, the operation of the packaging device 1 will be described.

[0058] As shown in Figure 10, with the packaging sheet S placed on the support plate 14, the worker presses down on the resin plate 16 with the crops W to elastically deform it once, and then supplies the crops W from the supply port 2 into the packaging device 1 and places them on the support body 33.

[0059] 11, crop W is then placed on support part 91 of support 33 with packaging sheet S therebetween, with substantially the entire crop W (except for the central part of the upper surface) wrapped in packaging sheet S. In this way, crop W is set on support part 91 of support 33 in the first state.

[0060] Then, after both holders 34 are closed from the open state to the closed state and clamp the left and right sides of the crop W from both sides, first lifting body 31, together with second lifting body 32 and support body 33 which rise and fall integrally therewith, descends from the elevated position to the descended position (corresponding descended position) and stops. As a result, the crop W placed on support portion 91 of support body 33 in the first state stops at a packaging position according to its size.

[0061] 12, sliding portion 26 slides toward crops W stopped at the wrapping position, and performs thermal welding and cutting while clamping a predetermined portion of packaging sheet S from the front, back, left and right in a position adjacent to and above crops W. As a result, crops W stopped at the wrapping position are entirely wrapped in packaging sheet S, and packaging is complete.

[0062] 13, the excess portion (excess film) S1 of the packaging sheet S is blown off by compressed air from air injection unit 27 and discharged from excess portion discharge outlet 20 to the outside of packaging device 1. In addition, both holders 34 are returned from the closed state to the open state by the opening operation, and the clamping of the agricultural product W by both holders 34 is released.

[0063] Then, as shown in Figure 14(a), the packaged agricultural produce W wrapped in the packaging sheet S is sent out from above the support portion 91 of the support 33 by rotating the support 33 around the rotation center axis L1 relative to the second lifting body 32 by a rotation angle θ (e.g., 60 degrees) while the first lifting body 31 remains stopped in the lowered position (the second lifting body 32 is also stopped), and the packaged agricultural produce W slides down the conveying section 127 and is discharged outside the packaging device 1 from the discharge outlet 3.

[0064] In other words, when support 33 rotates about rotation central axis L1 which is shifted by distance a to the anti-sending side (the side opposite to the sending-out side which is the discharge opening side) from center point P based only on the extending action of rotating cylinder 121 of first rotation drive means 38 and assumes the inclined second state, packaged agricultural products W are smoothly sent out and transferred, as if sliding down, from support part 91 onto conveying part 127. That is, for example, agricultural products W transfer from support part 91 onto conveying part 127, slide along the upper surface of conveying part 127 and are discharged from discharge opening 3.

[0065] 14(b), that is, when the pivot central axis L1' (pivot fulcrum directly below) is located directly below central point P, support body 33 rotates about pivot central axis L1' to enter the inclined second state, and the packaged agricultural products W are released in a tossed manner, with the end of the agricultural products W on the sending side falling downward and coming into contact with the upper surface of conveying section 127, and as a result, for example, as shown in the figure, the agricultural products W are discharged by rolling on conveying section 127. For this reason, in this comparative example, the agricultural products W are susceptible to impacts and may be damaged.

[0066] Therefore, according to the above-mentioned packaging device 1, unlike the comparative example shown in Figure 14(b), the central axis L1 of rotation of the support body 33 is located on the anti-feed side of the center point P of the support part 91 when viewed from the side in the first state of the support body 33, so that the agricultural produce W is less likely to receive impact when being fed from the support part 91, and damage to the agricultural produce W after packaging can be appropriately prevented.

[0067] Furthermore, in the second state of the support 33, the upper end position of the crop W on the support 33 in the second state before being sent out is lower than the upper end position in the comparative example (see Figure 14), so that the first lifting body 31 stopped in the lowered position does not need to be lowered any further and interference between the crop W and the slide portion 26 at the time of sending out can be avoided. Therefore, damage to the crop W after packaging can be more appropriately prevented and the durability of the motor, etc. can be improved by omitting the lowering operation of the first lifting body 31.

[0068] Furthermore, the support portion 91 of the support body 33 has a central support portion 107 that supports the central portion of the underside of the crop W, and multiple (e.g., four) peripheral support portions 108a, 108b that support the peripheral portion of the underside of the crop W that is located around the central portion, and since the central axis L1 of the support body 33 is located on the anti-feed side of the center point P of the central support portion 107 when viewed from the side in the first state, damage to the crop W after packaging can be effectively prevented.

[0069] Furthermore, since the conveying body 126 has the conveying section 127 against whose upper surface the end on the delivery side of the supporting section 91 abuts when the support body 33 is in the second state, damage to the packaged agricultural products W can be more effectively prevented.

[0070] Furthermore, since the packaged agricultural products W are delivered from the support 33 by rotation of the support 33 based solely on the extending action of the rotating cylinder 121 of the first rotation drive means 38, the durability of the motor, etc. can be improved compared to a configuration in which the support is rotated by, for example, bringing a part of the support driven by a motor into contact with an abutment member to deliver the agricultural products.

[0071] The agricultural produce to be packaged is not limited to lettuce (a bulb-shaped vegetable) and may be, for example, cabbage, melon, apple, etc., and may have any shape.

[0072] Furthermore, the cylinder serving as the drive source is not limited to an air cylinder, which is a fluid pressure cylinder, but may be, for example, a hydraulic cylinder, or the like. Also, instead of a cylinder, a drive source such as a motor may be used.

[0073] Furthermore, it is preferable that the parts that come into contact with the crops (support parts, holding parts, transport parts, etc.) have cushioning material which is an elastic material to absorb impacts on the crops, but cushioning material may not be necessary depending on the type of crop, for example.

[0074] Furthermore, the pivot point (central pivot axis) of the support body is not limited to being located below the anti-send side portion of the central support body when viewed from the side of the support body in the first state, but may be, for example, located below a peripheral support body located on the anti-send side among the multiple peripheral support bodies, or located below the anti-send side end portion of the support body (front end portion of the support body).

[0075] Although the above describes a packaging device for packaging agricultural products, the present invention can be applied to various devices other than packaging devices, such as a conveying device for conveying (sending) goods or other items. [Explanation of symbols]

[0076] 1 Packaging equipment 3 outlet 33 Support 38 First rotation drive means which is a rotation drive means 91 Support part 107 Central support part 107a Anti-delivery side part 108a, 108b Peripheral support parts 126 Carrier 127 Transport section L1: Rotation fulcrum, rotation center axis P center point S Packaging Sheet W Crops

Claims

1. A packaging device for packaging agricultural produce with a packaging sheet, comprising: a support that is turned into at least a first state and a second state by rotation about a rotation fulcrum, and has a support part that supports the agricultural product in the first state and delivers the agricultural product in the second state; a rotation drive means for rotating the support body about the rotation fulcrum, the pivot point is located on the opposite side to the center point of the support portion in a side view when the support body is in the first state, The support rotates to the first state based on the contraction operation of the rotation drive means, and rotates to the second state based on the expansion operation of the rotation drive means. A packaging device comprising:

2. The support rotates to the second state based only on the extending motion of the rotation drive means.

2. The packaging device according to claim 1.

3. A packaging device for packaging agricultural produce with a packaging sheet, comprising: A first lifting body; A second lifting body provided on the first lifting body so as to be able to rise and fall; a support body that is rotatably provided on the second lifting body about a pivot point, the support body being set to at least a first state and a second state by pivoting about the pivot point, the support body having a support part that supports the agricultural product in the first state and delivers the agricultural product in the second state; a holder that is rotatably provided on the first lifting body and that holds the agricultural products supported by the support portion; a first rotation drive means for rotating the support body about the rotation fulcrum relative to the second lifting body; a second rotation drive means for rotating the holding body relative to the first lifting body, the pivot point is located on the opposite side to the center point of the support portion in a side view when the support body is in the first state, The support rotates to the first state based on a contracting operation of the first rotation drive means, and rotates to the second state based on an expanding operation of the first rotation drive means. A packaging device comprising:

4. The support has an attachment portion, the first rotation drive means is composed of only an expandable and contractible fluid pressure cylinder, An end of the fluid pressure cylinder is rotatably attached to the mounting portion.

4. The packaging device according to claim 3.

5. The support portion of the support body is A central support portion that supports a central portion of a lower surface of the crop; a peripheral support portion for supporting a peripheral portion of the underside of the crop that is located around the central portion, The pivot point is located on the opposite side to the feed-out side from the center point of the central support part in a side view when the support body is in the first state.

5. The packaging device according to claim 1,

6. The pivot point is located below a portion of the central support portion on the opposite side to the feed-out side in a side view when the support body is in the first state.

6. The packaging device according to claim 5.

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