Boxing system

Abstract

To provide a boxing system capable of selectively boxing an article in a flat pile state or in an upright state.SOLUTION: A boxing system includes: a unit conveyance device 16 that conveys a support unit 15 having a support body 14 with a bottom part and a first regulation part; a parallel link robot that picks up an article 10 conveyed by the article conveyance device 11 and transfers the same to the support body 14; and a storage device 20 that picks up the accumulated articles supported by the support body 14 and stores them in a box body 18. The support body 14 is rotated by a rotary drive device 22 between a first posture in which the bottom part is aligned with a conveyance direction of the unit conveyance device 16 and a second posture in which the first regulation part is rotated downward from the first posture. A parallel link robot accumulates the articles 10 in a flat pile state on the support body 14 in the first posture, and boxing the articles 10 by the storage device 20. The parallel link robot accumulates the articles 10 in an upright state on the support 14 in the second posture, and boxing the articles 10 by the storage device 20.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a packing system that accumulates articles transported by a conveyor in a state in which the articles can be contained in a box, and packs the accumulated articles into a box all at once. [Background technology]

[0002] When packing flat-shaped articles transported by a conveyor into a box, there is a demand for packing the articles in a flat stacked state in which the articles are laid down, or in an upright state in which the articles are stacked horizontally. Patent Document 1 discloses a packing device that stacks articles transported by a conveyor in a flat stacked state using a stacking device and stores the stacked articles in a box. Patent Document 2 discloses a device that stacks articles transported by a conveyor in a flat stacked state, and a device that stacks articles transported by a conveyor in a stand-up state. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-104586 A [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 4387886 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The packing device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a dedicated device for packing articles in a flat stacked state, and cannot pack articles in a short-end standing state. Patent Document 2 discloses a stacking device for flat stacking and a stacking device for short-end standing, but both stacking devices are dedicated devices corresponding to the difference in the stacked state of articles when packing them, and in order to pack articles in a box body in a flat stacked state and a short-end standing state, a packing line for the flat stacked state and a packing line for the short-end standing state must be separately provided, which requires a large installation space and is costly. In addition, the device in Patent Document 2 cannot stack products in a short-end standing state in multiple layers, so when stacking products in a short-end standing state in multiple layers in a box body, the work of stacking the articles one layer at a time and storing them in the box body is required for the number of layers to be stacked, which is a drawback in that the packing work takes time and the processing capacity is low.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a packing system that can selectively pack articles in a flat stacked state or an edge-standing state. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to overcome the above problems and achieve the intended objective, the solution of the present application is: A packing system for packing a stack (M1, M2) of flat-shaped articles (10), comprising: an article transport device (11) for transporting the article (10); a support (14) having a bottom (12) and a restricting portion (13) rising from the bottom (12) so as to be perpendicular to the bottom (12), and capable of supporting the accumulated products (M1, M2); a unit transport device (16) for transporting a support unit (15) provided with the support body (14); a transfer device (17) that transfers the article (10) picked up from the article transport device (11) to the support (14) so ​​as to be accumulated; a box conveying device (19) for conveying a box body (18) with an open top; a storage device (20) that picks up the piles (M1, M2) of the articles (10) transferred to the support (14) by the transfer device (17) all at once and stores them in the box (18); a rotation mechanism (21) provided in the support unit (15) and capable of rotating the support body (14) around an axis parallel to the bottom portion (12) and the restricting portion (13); a rotation drive device (22) that drives the rotation mechanism (21) to rotate the support (14) and change the position of the support (14) between a first position in which the article (10) can be placed on the bottom (12) and a second position in which the side of the bottom (12) on which the regulating portion (13) is located is displaced downward from the first position so that the article (10) can be placed on the regulating portion (13), When packing the stack (M2) in a flat state in which the articles (10) are stacked in a lying position with the flat surfaces (10a) of the articles (10) facing up and down, the stack (M2) is stacked flat by transferring a plurality of articles (10) to the support (14) in the first position by the rotation drive device (22) so that the flat surfaces (10a) face the bottom (12) by the transfer device (17), and the stack (M2) is stored in a box body (18) by the storage device (20); When packing the stack (M1) in an upright state in which the small end faces (10b) of the articles (10) are stacked in an upright position with their small end faces (10b) facing up and down, the transfer device (17) transfers a plurality of articles (10) to the support (14) set to the second position by the rotary drive device (22) so that the flat surface (10a) faces the regulating portion (13) and the small end face (10b) faces the bottom (12), and then the support (14) is returned to the first position by the rotary drive device (22), so that the stack (M1) in which the articles (10) are in the upright position with their small end faces facing up and down is stored in a box body (18) by the storage device (20). Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the packing system of the present invention, items can be selectively stacked and packed in a box in either a flat stacked state or a short-edge standing state, thereby reducing installation space and enabling packing in both states at low cost. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing a packing system, with the parallel link robot (transfer device) omitted. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic front view showing the cartoning system. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing the unit transport device. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a support unit. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the support unit with one side removed. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 5. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing the storage unit. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing the storage unit. [Figure 9] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a process of stacking articles on a support in a standing state. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a process of accumulating articles in a flat stack on a support. [Figure 11] FIG. 1A is a schematic side view showing a state in which articles are piled up on a support with their ends standing, and FIG. 1B is a schematic side view showing a state in which articles are piled up flat on the support. [Figure 12] 13 is an explanatory diagram showing a process of storing stacked products in a box with their ends standing up. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Next, preferred embodiments of a packing system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. EXAMPLES

[0010] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 12, the packing system of the embodiment includes an article conveying device 11 for conveying flat-shaped article 10, a support 14 having a bottom 12 and a first regulating portion (regulating portion) 13 rising from the bottom 12 so as to be perpendicular to the bottom 12 and capable of supporting the accumulated articles M1 and M2, a unit conveying device 16 for conveying a support unit 15 on which the support 14 is provided, a transfer device 17 for transferring the article 10 picked up from the article conveying device 11 so as to be accumulated on the support 14, a box conveying device 19 for conveying a box body 18 with an open top, and a box body 18 with an open top, and a support unit 14 with a support unit 15 ... The storage device 20 is provided with a storage device that picks up the stacks M1 and M2 of the articles 10 transferred to the container 18 at once and stores them in the container 18, a rotation mechanism 21 that is provided in the support unit 15 and is capable of rotating the support 14 about an axis parallel to the bottom 12 and the regulating portion 13, and a rotation drive device 22 that drives the rotation mechanism 21 to rotate the support 14 to change the position of the support 14 to a first position in which the article 10 can be placed on the bottom 12 and a second position in which the side of the bottom 12 where the regulating portion 13 is located is displaced downward from the first position and the article 10 can be placed on the regulating portion 13. In the embodiment, in the second position of the support 14, the regulating portion 13 is inclined upward as it moves away from the bottom 12, and the article 10 can be placed on the regulating portion 13 with one small end face 10b (described later) of the article 10 supported by the bottom 12. When the packing system packs a stack M2 in which items 10 are stacked in a lying position with the flat surfaces 10a of the items 10 facing up and down, the packing system transfers multiple items 10 to the support body 14, which has been set in the first position by the rotational drive device 22, by the transfer device 17 so that the flat surfaces 10a face the bottom 12, and stores the stack M2 in a box 18 by the storage device 20.In addition, when packing a pile M1 in an upright state in which the small end faces 10b of the articles 10 are stacked in an upright position with their small end faces 10b facing up and down, the packing system is configured to transfer a plurality of articles 10 to the support body 14, which has been set to the second position by the rotary drive device 22, by the transfer device 17 so that the flat surface 10a faces the first regulating section 13 and the small end face 10b faces the bottom 12, and then to return the support body 14 to the first position by the rotary drive device 22, so that the pile M1 in which the articles 10 are in an upright position with their small end faces facing up and down is stored in the box body 18 by the storage device 20. In the article conveying device 11, the conveying direction toward the article pick-up area K described later where the article 10 is picked up by the transfer device 17, the conveying direction of the support unit 15 on the outgoing path section 23a described later (the running direction of the shuttle 24 described later) by the unit conveying device 16, and the conveying direction toward the boxing position described later where the accumulated products M1, M2 are stored in the box body 18 by the storage device 20 on the main conveying path 19a described later in the box conveying device 19 are parallel in the embodiment, and the conveying direction of the article 10, the conveying direction of the support unit 15, and the conveying direction of the box body 18 are simply referred to as the conveying direction, and the direction perpendicular to the conveying direction is referred to as the width direction (left-right direction). In addition, in order to facilitate understanding of the embodiment, in Figs. 1 to 3 and 5 to 8, indications indicating front and rear in relation to the conveying direction of the support unit 15 on the outgoing path section 23a of the unit conveying device 16 and indications indicating left and right in the width direction as viewed from the front side (downstream side) of the conveying direction are shown.

[0011] As shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, a belt conveyor that circulates an endless belt is used as the article conveying device 11 of the embodiment, and flat-shaped articles 10 supplied from the upstream side are placed in a lying position with their flat surface 10a facing the article conveying surface (belt surface) and are conveyed in a line at a predetermined interval along the conveying direction. The articles 10 are packages in which products are wrapped in a packaging material such as film or paper, or packages in which products are stored in a packaging box, and are generally flat and approximately rectangular in shape. In the embodiment, the articles 10 are placed on the article conveying surface with the small end surfaces 10b, 10b facing the short side direction (long sides) oriented along the conveying direction and conveyed. The article conveying device 11 is provided with an article detection sensor (not shown) that can detect the articles 10 being conveyed, and at the downstream end, a discharge section 11a is provided that discharges the articles 10 that have passed through the transfer device 17 without being picked up outside the machine.

[0012] 1, 2 and 3, the unit conveying device 16 is disposed below and spaced from the article conveying device 11. The unit conveying device 16 includes a circular conveying path 23 and a plurality of shuttles 24 provided with the support units 15 and capable of running on the circular conveying path 23 by linear motor drive control, and the plurality of shuttles 24 are driven to run independently at predetermined intervals in the running direction. The circular conveying path 23 is composed of two straight portions 23a and 23b extending parallel to the conveying direction, parallel to each other and spaced apart in the width direction intersecting the conveying direction, and an upstream conveying portion 23c and a downstream conveying portion 23d for conveying the shuttle 24 between the straight portions 23a and 23b, and is configured to circulate the shuttle 24.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, one of the straight sections 23a and 23b constitutes the outgoing path section 23a along which the shuttle 24 runs in the same direction as the conveying direction toward the article pick-up area K where the article 10 is picked up by the transfer device 17 in the article conveying device 11, and the other constitutes the return path section 23b along which the shuttle 24 runs in the opposite direction to the conveying direction of the article 10. The upstream transfer section 23c is formed in a straight line in which one shuttle 24 can be positioned, and is configured to move in the width direction between the upstream end of the outgoing path section 23a and the downstream end of the return path section 23b. The downstream transfer section 23d is formed in a straight line in which one shuttle 24 can be positioned, and is configured to move in the width direction between the downstream end of the outgoing path section 23a and the upstream end of the return path section 23b. Each of the outgoing path section 23a, the return path section 23b, the upstream transfer section 23c, and the downstream transfer section 23d is provided with a linear guide having a coil built in over the entire length. The shuttle 24 has a permanent magnet attached to its body, and the magnetic force of the permanent magnet attracts the shuttle 24 to the surfaces of the linear guides of the outbound path section 23a, the return path section 23b, the upstream transfer section 23c and the downstream transfer section 23d. The operation of the shuttle 24 is controlled by linear motor drive, in which the supply of electricity to the coil is controlled to cause the shuttle 24 to run along the linear guide.

[0014] As shown in Figs. 3 to 6, the support unit 15 provided on the shuttle 24 has a unit body 25 having a pair of frames 25a, 25b spaced apart in the width direction, which is fixed to the shuttle 24. The unit body 25 supports the support 14 rotatably around an axis in the width direction (around an axis parallel to the bottom 12 and the first regulating portion 13). The support 14 includes the bottom 12 on which the article 10 can be placed, the first regulating portion 13 located in front of the bottom 12 in the conveying direction (the running direction of the shuttle 24 in the outgoing path portion 23a) and extending from the bottom 12 upwardly intersecting the conveying direction by a predetermined length, and a pair of side portions 26a, 26b opposed to each other and spaced apart in the width direction (the direction of the rotation axis of the support 14) sandwiching the bottom 12. The support unit 15 is provided with a second regulating portion 27 that is fixed to the unit body 25 and is located rearward of the bottom 12 in the conveying direction, and extends from the bottom 12 of the support 14 in the first position by a predetermined length in an upward direction intersecting with the conveying direction, and is configured to define an article storage section N that opens upward (to the side toward which the surface of the bottom 12 faces) between the second regulating portion 27 and the support 14. The first regulating portion 13 and the second regulating portion 27 are composed of a plurality of rods 13a, 27a spaced apart in the width direction at an interval such that the article 10 does not fall from the article storage section N, and the bottom 12 is provided with comb teeth portions 12b formed in a comb shape corresponding to the rods 13a, 27a of the first regulating portion 13 and the second regulating portion 27 at the front end and rear end of the flat body 12a, and is configured to allow the support 40a of the first support member 40 described later to enter the article storage section N. Further, side portions 26a, 26b are formed in flat plate shapes capable of supporting the left and right ends in the width direction of articles 10 accumulated in article storage portion N (see Figs. 9, 10, and 11). Support body 14 is configured so that its posture can be changed by rotation mechanism 21 provided in support unit 15 between a first posture (see solid line in Fig. 5) in which bottom portion 12 is horizontal along the conveying direction by rotating while maintaining a right-angle relationship between bottom portion 12 and first regulating portion 13, and a second posture (see two-dot chain line in Fig. 5) in which bottom portion 12 is inclined downward from the rear side to the front side in the conveying direction and first regulating portion 13 extends from the inclined lower end of bottom portion 12 so as to be inclined upward toward the front.11 placed on the bottom 12 extends a predetermined length to the left and right from the bottom 12, and the bottom surfaces of the extending portions of the stacks M1, M2 can be supported without interference from receiving portions 41a, 41a described later in the storage device 20. The support body 14 is set to a size such that the size of the stack N in the first position can support stack M2 of the maximum number of articles 10 that can be stored in the box body 18.

[0015] 6, a screw shaft 28 extending in the width direction is rotatably supported between the pair of frames 25a, 25b, and rotating members 29a, 29b facing each other in the width direction are supported at a portion of the screw shaft 28 that is inside the frames 25a, 25b and is not threaded, so that they can rotate relatively to the screw shaft 28. A bottom 12 is disposed on the rotating members 29a, 29b so that the pair of rotating members 29a, 29b and the support 14 rotate integrally. An operating gear 30 capable of rotating relative to the screw shaft 28 is disposed between one of the rotating members 29a and the corresponding frame 25a so as to rotate integrally with the rotating member 29a. A drive gear 31 meshing with the operating gear 30 is rotatably supported on one frame 25a, a rotation shaft of the drive gear 31 protrudes outside the one frame 25a, and a tilting driven coupling 32 incorporating a magnet to form a magnetic coupling is disposed on the protruding end of the rotation shaft. A tilting drive coupling 37, which is disposed on a tilting drive shaft of the rotation drive device 22 to form a magnetic coupling, is magnetically connected to the tilting driven coupling 32 in a non-contact manner by a built-in magnet. When the drive gear 31 is rotated by the rotation drive device 22, the support 14 rotates around the screw shaft 28 together with the rotating members 29a, 29b under the meshing action with the operating gear 30. In this embodiment, the rotation mechanism 21 includes the operating gear 30, the drive gear 31, and the tilting driven coupling 32. In addition, the gear ratio between the operating gear 30 and the driving gear 31 is set to a value that prevents the support 14 from moving from the second position due to the weight of the support 14 or the accumulated product M1 when the magnetic connection between the tilting driven coupling 32 and the tilting driving coupling 37 is released.

[0016] As shown in Fig. 6, between the pair of rotating members 29a, 29b, guide shafts 33, 33 are installed in parallel on both sides in the radial direction sandwiching the screw shaft 28, and the pair of side portions 26a, 26b are slidably supported by the guide shafts 33, 33. The pair of side portions 26a, 26b are configured to be movable toward and away from each other by a width adjustment mechanism 34 provided in the support unit 15, and the separation distance between the side portions 26a, 26b can be adjusted according to the size of the article 10 (in this embodiment, the longitudinal direction of the article 10 (the length of the small end face 10b). As shown in Fig. 6, the width adjustment mechanism 34 comprises the screw shaft 28 on which male screw portions 28a, 28b are formed, spaced apart in the axial direction and having a mutually reverse screw relationship, a pair of female screw members 35a, 35b arranged on the side portions 26a, 26b and screwed into the male screw portions 28a, 28b, and one of the female screw members 35a, 35b on the screw shaft 28. and a width adjustment driven coupling 36 that is disposed on the shaft end protruding from the frame 25a and has a magnet built in to form a magnetic coupling. The width adjustment drive coupling 38 that is disposed on a width adjustment drive shaft of the rotation drive device 22 described later and that forms a magnetic coupling is magnetically connected to the width adjustment driven coupling 36 in a non-contact manner by a built-in magnet, and the screw shaft 28 is rotated by the rotation drive device 22 in a state where the pair of female screw members 28a, 28b move toward and away from each other, thereby adjusting the mutual distance between the pair of side portions 26a, 26b.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3, the first station S1, the second station S2, the third station S3, the fourth station S4, and the fifth station S5 are provided in this order from the upstream side to the downstream side on the circular conveying path 23 of the unit conveying device 16 in the same direction as the conveying direction of the article 10 toward the article pick-up area K on the circular conveying path 23. Then, in the unit conveying device 16, the support unit 15 is stopped at each station S1 to S5 and a predetermined process is performed. In the embodiment, the first station S1 is set at a position where the upstream transfer section 23c is connected to the upstream end of the outgoing path section 23a, and the fifth station S5 is set at a position where the downstream transfer section 23d is connected to the downstream end of the outgoing path section 23a. The rotation drive devices 22 are respectively provided corresponding to the first station S1, the third station S3, and the fourth station S4 provided on the outgoing path section 23a. The support unit 15 positioned at the first station S1 is set as a station where the distance between the pair of side parts 26a, 26b is adjusted by the rotary drive device 22 to a distance position where the article 10 can be stored, and the support 14 can be changed from the first position to the second position as necessary. The second station S2 is set as a station where the article 10 of the article conveying device 11 is transferred to the support 14 by the transfer device 17. The third station S3 is set as a station where the support 14 is returned from the second position to the first position by the rotary drive device 22 when the support 14 is changed to the second position at the first station S1. The fourth station S4 is set as a station where the distance between the pair of side parts 26a, 26b is widened by the rotary drive device 22 to a position where the second support members 41, 41 of the storage device 20 described later do not come into contact with each other, and where the accumulated articles M1, M2 are picked up from the support 14. The fifth station S5 is set as a station where the support unit 15 can be positioned on the downstream transfer section 23d connected to the downstream end of the outbound path section 23a, and the support unit 1 can be moved to the return path section 23b by movement of the downstream transfer section 23d.Then, the support unit 15 positioned at the downstream transfer section 23d is moved upstream along the return path section 23b, and the support unit 15 is positioned at the upstream transfer section 23c connected to the downstream end of the return path section 23b, and then the upstream transfer section 23c is moved to connect to the upstream end of the outgoing path section 23a, thereby positioning the support unit 1 at the first station S1. The unit transport device 16 is equipped with a unit detection sensor (not shown) capable of detecting that the support unit 15 is positioned at the second station S2.

[0018] 3 and 6, the rotation drive device 22 includes a tilt drive shaft and a width adjustment drive shaft, the ends of which are provided with a tilt drive coupling 37 and a width adjustment drive coupling 38 that can be magnetically coupled to the tilt driven coupling 32 and the width adjustment driven coupling 36 of the support unit 15, and a drive motor (neither of which is shown) such as a servo motor that rotates and drives each drive shaft. The rotation drive device 22 is configured to move, by a moving device (not shown), between a retracted position spaced to the side of the support unit 15 positioned at the first, third and fourth stations S1, S3 and S4 and a coupled position where the tilt drive coupling 37 and the width adjustment drive coupling 38 can be magnetically coupled to the corresponding tilt driven coupling 32 and width adjustment driven coupling 36 of the support unit 15 positioned at each station S1, S3 and S4 without contact. The rotation drive device 22 is configured to be able to change the posture of the support 14 between the first posture and the second posture by rotating the tilt drive coupling 37 while the tilt driven coupling 32 of the support unit 15 and the tilt drive coupling 37 are connected to each other. The inclination angle of the first regulating portion 13 with respect to the horizontal plane in the second posture is configured to be able to be arbitrarily set in relation to the size and center of gravity position of the article 10 accumulated on the support 14. The rotation drive device 22 is also configured to be able to adjust the separation distance between the pair of side portions 26a, 26b, or to move the pair of side portions 26a, 26b closer to each other by a predetermined distance to align the left and right ends of the article 10 by rotating the width adjustment drive coupling 38 while the width adjustment driven coupling 36 of the support unit 15 and the width adjustment drive coupling 38 are connected to each other.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, the box conveying device 19 is arranged so as to surround the outward path section 23a, the upstream transfer section 23c, and the downstream transfer section 23d in the unit conveying device 16. The box conveying device 19 includes a main conveying path 19a extending parallel to the conveying direction of the article 10 by the article conveying device 11 toward the article pick-up area K and located to the side of the outward path section 23a (left side in the embodiment), a box supply path 19b connected to the upstream end of the main conveying path 19a and located outside the upstream transfer section 23c (rear side in the embodiment), and a box discharge path 19c connected to the downstream end of the main conveying path 19a and located outside the downstream transfer section 23d (front side in the embodiment), and conveys the box body 18 that opens upward. In the embodiment, the main conveying path 19a is an attachment conveyor that pushes the box body 18 by the running of a pushing section 52 arranged at predetermined intervals on an endless cord such as an endless chain. In addition, the box supply path 19b and the box discharge path 19c are both belt conveyors arranged on the sides of the main conveying path 19a and running in the width direction, and boxes 18 are transferred from the box supply path 19b to the main conveying path 19a and from the main conveying path 19a to the box discharge path 19c by a transfer means (not shown). In addition, in the main conveying path 19a of the box conveying device 19, a box packing position for packing the accumulated products M1, M2 is set at a position corresponding to the fourth station S4 of the unit conveying device 16, and the box conveying device 19 is configured to stop and position an empty box 18 at the box packing position.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 2, above the article transport device 11 and the unit transport device 16, a parallel link robot 17 is disposed as the transfer device 17 at a position corresponding to the second station S2 in the unit transport device 16. The parallel link robot 17 includes a handling section 39 having a holding means 39a formed of an adsorption section capable of adsorbing an article 10 at the end of a robot arm 17a that can move freely in three-dimensional space. The parallel link robot 17 is configured to hold and pick up the articles 10 transported by the article transport device 11 one by one with the holding means 39a, and then rotate the handling section 39 horizontally to change the orientation of the article 10 held by the holding means 39a. In the embodiment, the article 10 whose longitudinal direction is along the transport direction is horizontally rotated by 90 degrees around an axis in the vertical direction to change the longitudinal direction to the width direction, and transferred to the support 14 positioned at the second station S2. Furthermore, the parallel link robot 17 can arbitrarily change the up-down, left-right, and front-back inclination of the article 10 held by the holding means 39a by controlling the movement of the robot arm 17a and the handling unit 39. In other words, the parallel link robot 17 is configured to arbitrarily change the direction and posture of the article 10 picked up from the article transport device 11 and transfer it to the support body 14.

[0021] The parallel link robot 17 is configured to move the holding means 39a above the article pick-up area K when the unit detection sensor detects that the support unit 15 is positioned at the second station S2 and when the article 10 detected by the article detection sensor arrives at the article pick-up area K set downstream of the article detection position of the article detection sensor in the article transport device 11. The parallel link robot 17 also includes an imaging means (not shown) capable of imaging the article 10 in the article pick-up area K, calculates a holding position at which the article 10 imaged by the imaging means can be held and picked up by the holding means 39a, and controls the movement of the robot arm 17a and the handling unit 39 so that the article 10 is held and picked up by the holding means 39a at the holding position. The parallel link robot 17 is configured to pass through the article 10 without holding it when the article detection sensor detects the article 10 while the unit detection sensor is not detecting the support unit 15.

[0022] Here, as described below, when packing the accumulated product M1 in which the articles 10 are piled up in an upright position, the parallel link robot 17 transfers the article 10 to the support body 14 in the second position in such a manner that the flat surface 10a faces the first regulating portion 13 and one small end surface 10b faces the bottom 12. As shown in Fig. 9(a) to Fig. 9(d), the lower flat surface 10a of the article 10 transferred to the support 14 by the parallel link robot 17 is supported by abutting against the first regulating portion 13 or the upper flat surface 10a2 of the article 10 already transferred, and one small end surface 10b facing the bottom 12 is supported by abutting against the bottom 12 or the small end surface 10b of the article 10 already transferred on the side away from the bottom 12, so that the flat surface 10a of each article 10 is aligned along the first regulating portion 13 and the small end surface 10b is in an inclined position along the bottom 12, and is lined up in a plurality of layers in the direction away from the bottom 12 and stacked in a plurality of layers. As a result, when the support 14 is returned to the first position, the plurality of articles 10 are stacked in layers side by side with their small ends standing (see Fig. 9(e)). In the embodiment, the parallel link robot 17 picks up the item 10 from the item conveying device 11 and rotates it horizontally by 90 degrees around the vertical axis so that the flat surface 10a is horizontal. By releasing the hold on the support 14, the item 10 is supported on the support 14 in a direction that is changed by 90 degrees horizontally from the direction in which it is conveyed by the item conveying device 11 and its longitudinal direction is perpendicular to the conveying direction.

[0023] 1 and 2, the storage device 20 is disposed above the unit conveying device 16 and the box conveying device 19 at a position corresponding to the fourth station S4 in the unit conveying device 16. The storage device 20 includes a pair of first support members 40, 40 (see FIG. 7) capable of supporting both the front and rear sides of the stacked products M1, M2 supported by the support body 14 in the conveying direction of the support unit 15, a pair of second support members 41, 41 (see FIG. 8) capable of supporting both the left and right sides of the stacked products M1, M2 in the width direction intersecting with the conveying direction of the support unit 15, a first moving mechanism 42 that moves the pair of first support members 40, 40 toward and away from each other, and a second moving mechanism 43 that moves the pair of second support members 41, 41 toward and away from each other, and is configured to support and pick up the stacked products M1, M2 consisting of all the items 10 stacked on the support body 14 at once. In addition, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, the storage device 20 is equipped with a regulating member 44 that can abut against the upper surfaces of the stacks M1, M2 supported by the first support members 40, 40 and the second support members 41, 41, and a vertical movement means 45 that moves the regulating member 44 up and down.

[0024] The first support members 40, 40 are provided with a plurality of support members 40a spaced apart in the width direction, which can pass between the rod members 13a, 27a constituting the first restricting portion 13 and the second restricting portion 27 of the support 14 and can enter between the teeth of the front and rear comb tooth portions 12b, 12b of the bottom portion 12. The first moving mechanism 42 includes a servo motor 42a and a slide mechanism 42b to which the pair of first support members 40, 40 are linked, and is configured such that the pair of first support members 40, 40 move relatively closer to and farther away from each other by driving the slide mechanism 42b with the servo motor 42a. The first moving mechanism 42 moves the pair of first support members 40, 40 between a standby position spaced apart from the front-rear dimension of the accumulated products M1, M2 and a support position capable of supporting the accumulated products M1, M2 from the front and rear. The second support members 41, 41 are provided at their lower ends with plate-shaped receiving portions 41a that can rotate around an axis in the direction in which the first support members 40, 40 are separated (front-rear direction), and the receiving portions 41a are configured to rotate between a vertical first position and a horizontal second position toward the other second support member by an operating means (not shown) (see FIG. 8). The second moving mechanism 43 includes a servo motor 43a and a slide mechanism 43b to which the pair of second support members 41, 41 are linked, and is configured to move the pair of second support members 41, 41 relatively toward and away from each other by driving the slide mechanism 43b with the servo motor 43a. The second moving mechanism 43 moves the pair of second support members 41, 41 between a standby position spaced apart by a dimension of the stacked products M1, M2 in the width direction and a support position capable of supporting the stacked products M1, M2 from both sides in the width direction. By rotating the receiving portions 41a, 41a from the first position to the second position at the support position, the receiving portions 41a, 41a can support the lower surfaces of the parts of the stacks M1, M2 extending to the left and right from the bottom portion 12. The first moving mechanism 42 and the second moving mechanism 43 are configured to be able to adjust the support positions of the corresponding first supporting members 40, 40 and second supporting members 41, 41 according to the sizes of the stacks M1, M2 in the corresponding directions.

[0025] The regulating member 44 is a member that is located in the space surrounded by the first support members 40, 40 and the second support members 41, 41, and can abut approximately at the center of the upper surface of the products M1, M2, and is supported via a guide rod 46 so as to be vertically movable on a lifting frame 51 that is moved up and down by a vertical movement mechanism 49 described later. The vertical movement means 45 is composed of an air cylinder 45 whose rod is disposed in the lifting frame 51 facing downward and whose rod is connected to the regulating member 44, and is configured to move the regulating member 44 up and down by operating the air cylinder 45. In addition, when the accumulated items M1, M2 are stored in the box body 18, the air cylinder 45 lowers the regulating member 44 to regulate the movement of the accumulated items M1, M2 when the first and second support members 40, 41 that have entered the inside of the box body 18 are pulled out of the box body 18, thereby preventing the accumulated items M1, M2 from falling out of the box body 18 together with the first and second support members 40, 41 (see Figure 12).

[0026] As shown in Figures 1, 2, 7 and 8, the storage device 20 includes a left-right movement mechanism 48 for moving a storage unit 47, which is composed of the first support members 40, 40, the second support members 41, 41, the first movement mechanism 42, the second movement mechanism 43, the regulating member 44 and the air cylinder 45, in the width direction and a vertical movement mechanism 49 for moving the storage unit 47 in the vertical direction. In the storage device 20, a lifting frame 51 is supported so as to be vertically movable on a moving body 50, which is disposed on a machine frame and supported so as to be movable in the width direction, and the storage unit 47 is disposed on the lifting frame 51. The left-right movement mechanism 48 is connected to the moving body 50, and by moving the moving body 50 in the width direction, the storage unit 47 is moved between above the fourth station S4 in the unit conveying device 16 and above the box packing position in the box conveying device 19. The vertical movement mechanism 49 is connected to the lifting frame 51, and by moving the lifting frame 51 in the vertical direction, moves the storage unit 47 up and down between a waiting position above the fourth station S4 and spaced above the support unit 15, and a receiving position where the stacked products M1, M2 consisting of all the articles 10 stacked and supported on the support body 14 can be supported by the first and second support members 40, 40, 41, 41. The vertical movement mechanism 49 also moves the storage unit 47 up and down between a waiting position above the packing position and spaced above the box body 18, and a storage position where the stacked products M1, M2 supported by the first and second support members 40, 40, 41, 41 can be stored in the box body (see FIG. 12). The storage position is set at a position spaced upward from the inner bottom surface of the box body 18 by a distance that allows the second position receiving portions 41a, 41a of the second support members 41, 41 that have entered the box body together with the accumulated products M1, M2 to return to the first position.

[0027] Next, the operation of the packing system according to the embodiment will be described. In the embodiment, the case of packing an accumulated product M1 in which articles 10 in a standing state are accumulated in a box body 18 in two tiers of six articles in the conveying direction of the box body 18, and the case of packing an accumulated product M2 in which articles 10 in a flat pile are accumulated in a box body 18 in five tiers of three articles in the conveying direction of the box body 18 will be described, but the number of articles M1 and M2 arranged in each tier and the number of tiers can be set arbitrarily according to the size of the articles 10.

[0028] (When stacking items in boxes with the ends standing up) In the support unit 15 that has been moved from the return path 23b of the unit conveying device 16 to the first station S1 by the upstream transfer part 23c, the support 14 is in a first position as shown in Fig. 2. When the support unit 15 is positioned at the first station S1, the rotation drive device 22 arranged corresponding to the first station S1 is moved from the retreat position to the connection position, and the tilt drive coupling 37 and the width adjustment drive coupling 38 of the rotation drive device 22 are connected in a non-contact manner to the corresponding tilt driven coupling 32 and width adjustment driven coupling 36 of the support unit 15. The rotation drive device 22 rotates and drives the tilt drive coupling 37 and the width adjustment drive coupling 38 to adjust the distance between the pair of side parts 26a, 26b of the support 14 in accordance with the longitudinal dimension of the article 10, and changes the support 14 from the first position to the second position (see Fig. 9(a)). Then, after the rotary drive device 22 moves to the retreat position, the support unit 15, whose support body 14 has had its posture changed and its width adjusted at the first station S1, is moved by the unit transport device 16 to the second station S2 and stopped there.

[0029] When the unit detection means detects that the support unit 15 is positioned at the second station S2, and the article detection sensor of the article transport device 11 detects the article 10, the parallel link robot 17 controls the movement of the robot arm 17a and the handling section 39, and when the detected article 10 arrives at the article pick-up area K, the parallel link robot 17 holds the article 10 by the holding means 39a of the handling section 39 and picks it up from the article transport device 11. The parallel link robot 17 controls the handling section 39 to rotate it horizontally by 90 degrees, thereby changing the orientation of the article 10 held by the holding means 39a by 90 degrees so that the small end faces 10b, 10b extending in the longitudinal direction face forward and backward in the transport direction of the support unit 15. The parallel link robot 17 then moves the article 10 to above the bottom side of the first regulating section 13 of the support 14 in the second posture, and releases the holding of the article 10 by the holding means 39a, thereby transferring the article 10 to the support 14. When the article 10 is released from the holding means 39a, as shown in Figure 9(a), the flat surface 10a tilts to follow the inclination of the first regulating portion 13, so that the flat surface 10a is supported in contact with the first regulating portion 13 and one small end surface 10b of the article 10 is supported in contact with the bottom 12, and the article 10 is supported in an inclined position that follows the inclination of the first regulating portion 13.

[0030] When the article detection sensor detects the next article 10, the parallel link robot 17 holds and picks up the article 10 that has arrived in the article pick-up area K using the holding means 39a in the same manner as described above, and moves the second article 10 to above the first article 10 transferred to the support 14, thereby releasing the holding of the article 10 by the holding means 39a. The article 10 released from holding by the holding means 39a is supported in an inclined position with the flat surface 10a facing the upper flat surface 10a of the first article 10 in an inclined position tilted to follow it, and one small end surface 10b abuts against the bottom 12, as shown in FIG. 9(b). Then, the parallel link robot 17 moves the third article 10 to above the first regulating portion 13 on the side away from the bottom 12 of the first article 10 transferred to the support 14, thereby releasing the holding of the article 10 by the holding means 39a. 9(c), the article 10 released from the holding means 39a has its flat surface 10a inclined along the inclination of the first restricting portion 13, so that the flat surface 10a is supported in contact with the first restricting portion 13 and one small end surface 10b of the article 10 is supported in an inclined position in which it is in contact with the opposing small end surface 10b of the first article 10. Thereafter, the parallel link robot 17 stacks the articles 10 in a staircase-like manner in the same manner as the second and third articles 10, 10, and the last (twelfth) article 12 is transferred onto the article 12 located on the side away from the bottom 12 of the previously transferred article 10, forming an accumulated product M1 in which 12 articles 10 are accumulated in an inclined position along the inclination of the first restricting portion 13, as shown in FIG. 9(d).

[0031] When the accumulated product M1 is formed in the second station S2, the unit conveying device 16 moves the support unit 15 of the second station S2 to the third station S3 and stops it. When the support unit 15 is positioned in the third station S3, the rotation drive device 22 arranged corresponding to the third station S3 is moved from the retreat position to the connection position, and the tilt drive coupling 37 and the width adjustment drive coupling 38 of the rotation drive device 22 are connected to the corresponding tilt driven coupling 32 and width adjustment driven coupling 36 of the support unit 15 in a non-contact manner. The rotation drive device 22 rotates and drives the tilt drive coupling 37 to return the support 14 from the second position to the first position, and then rotates and drives the width adjustment drive coupling 38 to move the pair of side parts 26a, 26b of the support 14 toward and away from each other, thereby aligning the left and right ends of the articles 10 constituting the accumulated product M1. As a result, the stacked product M1 supported by the support 14 with the bottom 12 horizontal is stacked in two horizontal rows with the short ends standing on the bottom 12 in the conveying direction of the support unit 15, as shown in Figures 9(e) and 11(a), with the left and right ends of each article 10 aligned. When the posture of the support 14 is returned from the second posture to the first posture, the stacked product M1 with the articles 10 standing on the short ends by the first regulating part 13 is supported on the opposite side to the side supported by the first regulating part 13 by the second regulating part 27 facing the first regulating part 13, and the momentum of the rotation of the support 14 prevents the articles 10 from falling off the support 14 and allows the stacked state to be maintained. Then, after the rotation drive device 22 moves to the retreat position, the support unit 15 with the posture of the support 14 changed at the third station S3 is moved to the fourth station S4 by the unit transport device 16 and stopped there.

[0032] In the storage device 20, the storage unit 47 is positioned at a standby position above the fourth station S4, and the first support members 40, 40 and the second support members 41, 41 of the storage unit 47 are both positioned at the standby position. The receiving portions 41a, 41a of the second support members 41, 41 are positioned at a vertical first position. When the support unit 15 is positioned at the fourth station S4, the rotation drive device 22 arranged corresponding to the fourth station S4 is moved from the retreat position to the connection position, and the width adjustment drive coupling 38 of the rotation drive device 22 is connected to the corresponding width adjustment driven coupling 36 of the support unit 15 in a non-contact manner. The rotation drive device 22 rotates and drives only the width adjustment drive coupling 38, and moves the pair of side portions 26a, 26b of the support body 14 to a separation position where the second support members 41, 41 of the storage unit 47 can enter between the stack M1 and the pair of side portions 26a, 26b. When the pair of side parts 26a, 26b move to the separated position, the storage device 20 lowers the storage unit 47 in the standby position to the receiving position, and moves the pair of first support members 40, 40 from the standby position to the support position by the first moving mechanism 42. The first support members 40, 40 support the front and rear of the stack M1, the front and rear of which are supported by the first restricting part 13 and the second restricting part 27 of the support body 14, from the front and rear by the supports 40a, 40a that pass through the gap between the corresponding rods 13a, 13a, 27a, 27a of the first restricting part 13 and the second restricting part 27. In addition, the pair of second support members 41, 41 move from the standby position to the receiving position, thereby entering between the pair of side parts 26a, 26b and the stack M1, and the receiving parts 41a, 41a in the first posture facing downward from the bottom 12. Then, the pair of second support members 41, 41 are moved toward each other from the standby position to the support position by the second moving mechanism 43, whereby the left and right side surfaces of the stack M1 are supported by the second support members 41, 41. Also, the receiving portions 41a, 41a are rotated from the first position to the second position, and the receiving portions 41a, 41a support the lower surfaces of the portions of the stack M1 extending to the left and right from the bottom 12.

[0033] When the storage device 20 supports the stacked products M1 from the front, rear, left and right, and bottom sides with the first support members 40, 40, the second support members 41, 41, and the receiving parts 41a, 41a, the storage unit 47 is raised to a standby position by the vertical movement mechanism 49, whereby the stacked products M1 are picked up all at once from the support body 14. As shown in Figs. 12(a) and (b), the storage device 20 moves the storage unit 47 by the horizontal movement mechanism 48 to above the empty box body 18 that is stopped and positioned at the packing position in the box conveying device 19, and then the storage unit 47 is lowered to the storage position by the vertical movement mechanism 49 (see Figs. 12(a) and (b)). When the storage unit 47 is lowered to the storage position, the first support members 40, 40 and the second support members 41, 41 enter the box body together with the stacked products M1. Then, by rotating the receiving portions 41a, 41a from the second position to the first position in the storage position, the support from below of the accumulated product M1 is released, and the accumulated product M1 falls while being guided by the first and second support members 40, 41 to the inner bottom surface of the box body 18 and is stored in the box body 18.

[0034] When the storage device 20 releases the support of the stacked product M1 by the receiving parts 41a, 41a, the vertical movement mechanism 49 raises the storage unit 47 to a standby position, and the air cylinder 45 lowers the regulating member 44 (see FIG. 12(c)), so that the regulating member 44 regulates the upward movement of the stacked product M1 together with the first and second support members 40, 41 that are pulled out of the box body 18 by the raising of the storage unit 47. This prevents the stacked product M1 from slipping out of the box body 18 together with the first and second support members 40, 41. Then, the stacked product M1 is stored inside the box body 18, with six articles 10 stacked side by side in the conveying direction in two rows, one above the other.

[0035] In the fourth station S4, the support unit 15, which has picked up the stack M1 from the support 14, is moved to the fifth station S5 by the unit transport device 16, and is moved from the outgoing path 23a to the downstream transfer section 23d located at the fifth station S5. Then, after the downstream transfer section 23d is moved to a position connected to the upstream end of the return path section 23b, the support unit 15 located at the downstream transfer section 23d is moved along the return path section 23b to the upstream transfer section 23c connected to the downstream end of the return path section 23b. Then, the support unit 15 located at the upstream transfer section 23c is moved to a position connected to the upstream end of the outgoing path section 23a, and is again positioned at the first station S1.

[0036] (When items are stacked flat and packed into boxes) Next, the case where the stacked products M2 are packed into the box 18 in a flat state will be described, mainly with respect to the differences from the case where the stacked products M2 are packed into the box 18 in an upright state.

[0037] The support 14 of the support unit 15 positioned at the first station S1 by the upstream transfer section 23c is in a first posture, and at the first station S1, only the spacing between the pair of side portions 26a, 26b of the support 14 is adjusted by the rotation drive device 22. After the spacing between the support 14 is adjusted at the first station S1, the support unit 15 is moved by the unit transport device 16 to the second station S2 and stops there.

[0038] As described above, when the article detection sensor detects the article 10 while the unit detection means detects that the support unit 15 has been positioned at the second station S2, the parallel link robot 17 controls the movement of the robot arm 17a and the handling unit 39 to hold and pick up the article 10 that has arrived at the article pick-up area K with the holding means 39a, and also rotates the handling unit 39 horizontally by 90 degrees to change the orientation of the article 10 held by the holding means 39a by 90 degrees. Then, the parallel link robot 17 transfers the article 10 to the support 14 on the second regulating portion side of the bottom 12 of the support 14 in the first posture, with the flat surface 10a facing the bottom 12 and one small end face 10b facing the second regulating portion 27, as shown in Fig. 10(a).

[0039] When the parallel link robot 17 detects the next item 10 via the item detection sensor, it holds and picks up the item 10 that has arrived in the item pick-up area K using the holding means 39a in the same manner as described above, and transfers the item 10 to the support body 14 in a position where the flat surface 10a faces the bottom 12 and one small end face 10b faces the other small end face 10b of the first item 10 on the side away from the second regulating portion 27 of the first item 10 transferred to the support body 14. Furthermore, when the parallel link robot 17 detects the next article 10 by the article detection sensor, it holds and picks up the article 10 that has arrived in the article pick-up area K by the holding means 39a in the same manner as described above, and transfers the article 10 to the support 14 on the side away from the second regulating section 27 of the second article 10 transferred to the support 14, in an orientation in which the flat surface 10a faces the bottom 12 and one small end face 10b faces the other small end face 10b of the second article 10 (see FIG. 10(b)). Thereafter, the parallel link robot 17 stacks the articles 10 in the same orientation in order on top of the first to third articles 10, thereby forming an accumulation M2 in which 15 articles 10 are accumulated in a flat stack as shown in FIG. 10(c).

[0040] When the accumulated product M2 is formed in the second station S2, the unit conveying device 16 moves the support unit 15 of the second station S2 to the third station S3 and stops there. When the support unit 15 is positioned in the third station S3, the rotation drive device 22 arranged corresponding to the third station S3 is moved from the retreat position to the connection position, and the width adjustment drive coupling 38 of the rotation drive device 22 is non-contact-connected to the corresponding width adjustment driven coupling 36 of the support unit 15. The rotation drive device 22 rotates and drives only the width adjustment drive coupling 38 to move the pair of side parts 26a, 26b of the support 14 toward and away from each other, thereby aligning the left and right ends of the articles 10 constituting the accumulated product M2 (see FIG. 11(b)). Then, after the rotation drive device 22 moves to the retreat position, the support unit 15 of the third station S3 is moved by the unit conveying device 16 to the fourth station S4 and stops there. The packing process by the storage device 20 of the stack M2 supported by the support 14 of the support unit 15 positioned at the fourth station S4 is the same as that of the stack M1 in the short end standing state described above.

[0041] In the packing system of the embodiment, the posture of the support 14 on which the articles 10 are accumulated is configured to be changeable between a first posture and a second posture, and the parallel link robot 17 transfers the articles 10 to the support 14 so that the articles 10 are in a flat-stacked state or a short-end standing state, so that the accumulated products M1, M2 accumulated by selecting the flat-stacked state or the short-end standing state by the same device can be packed into boxes. In other words, there is no need to provide two accumulation devices or production lines, one for flat stacking and one for short-end standing, which reduces the installation space and allows packing in both states at low cost. In addition, the parallel link robot 17 transfers the articles 10, with the flat surface 10a facing the first regulating section 13 and the small end surface 10b facing the bottom 12, to the support body 14 in the second position so that the articles 10 are lined up in a row away from the bottom 12 and stacked in multiple tiers.Therefore, with a simple configuration of simply returning the support body 14 to the first position, the articles 10 can be stacked in multiple tiers side-by-side with their short ends standing, thereby shortening the time required to pack the accumulated product M1 with the articles 10 standing in a tiered state, and improving work efficiency. In addition, in the embodiment, with respect to the support body 14 in the second position, the second item 10 is transferred onto the first regulating section 13 which slopes downward toward the bottom 12, and then the third item 10 is transferred onto the side of the first item 10 moving away from the bottom 12, and thereafter the items 10 are stacked in order in a stepped manner. Therefore, the third and subsequent items 10 which are transferred onto the side moving away from the bottom 12 are restricted in movement by the items 10 already transferred to the bottom side, and therefore the later transferred items 10 do not ride up onto the items 10 transferred earlier to the bottom side, and the stacking state can be maintained without being disturbed.

[0042] In the packing system of the embodiment, the rotation drive device 22 is arranged only in at least the first station S1, the third station S3, and the fourth station S4 where the posture of the support 14 needs to be changed among the multiple stations S1 to S5 provided in the unit conveying device 16, so that the number of parts can be reduced, the cost increase can be suppressed, and the configuration can be simplified. In addition, since the rotation drive device 22 is arranged in the stations S1, S3, and S4, and only the rotation mechanism 21 driven by the rotation drive device 22 is provided in the support unit 15, the configuration of the support unit 15 can be simplified, and there is no need to provide a configuration for supplying power to the moving support unit 15, so that the configuration of the entire device can be simplified. Furthermore, since the rotation drive device 22 is configured to be connected to the rotation mechanism 21 of the support unit 15 in a non-contact manner and driven, it is possible to suppress a decrease in durability due to wear at the connection part. Furthermore, since the rotary drive device 22 is separated from the support unit 15 except when necessary (when connected), the rotary drive device 22 does not come into contact with the support unit 15 moving on the outgoing path section 23 or the upstream transfer section 23c connected to the outgoing path section 23, thereby reducing the risk of damage to the support unit 15 or the rotary drive device 22. Furthermore, since the unit transport device 16 has the support unit 15 disposed on the shuttle 24 that travels by linear motor drive control, the transport operation of the support unit 15 has a high degree of freedom.

[0043] In the packing system of the embodiment, the distance between the pair of side parts 26a, 26b constituting the support 14 is configured to be adjustable by the width adjustment mechanism 34, so that it can easily accommodate articles 10 of various sizes. Also, the width adjustment mechanism 34 is configured to be driven by the rotation drive device 22, like the rotation mechanism 21, so that the configuration of the support unit 15 can be simplified. Also, the support 14 is set to a size capable of supporting the stack M2 of the maximum number of articles 10 that can be accommodated in the box body 18, so that it can also be used as the support 14 for the stack M1 of articles 10 that is less than the maximum number. Furthermore, a parallel link robot is adopted as the transfer device 17, and the handling unit 39 is configured to be rotated to change the orientation of the held articles 10, so that it can easily accommodate a case in which the orientation of the articles 10 transported by the article transport device 11 differs from the orientation of the articles 10 to be transferred to the support 14.

[0044] In the packing system of the embodiment, the widthwise ends of each of the articles 10 in the stacks M1, M2 stacked on the support 14 positioned at the third station S3 are aligned by moving the pair of side portions 26a, 26b closer to or farther apart using the rotary drive device 22 and the width adjustment mechanism 34, so that the aligned stacks M1, M2 can be stored in the box 18. Also, because the ends of the articles 10 are aligned by the width adjustment mechanism 34 that adjusts the distance between the pair of side portions 26a, 26b, there is no need to provide a dedicated device for aligning the ends of the articles 10, and it is possible to prevent the configuration from becoming complicated and the entire device from becoming large and long.

[0045] In the packing system of the embodiment, the inclination angle of the first regulating portion 13 in the second position of the support 14, the position of which is changed by the rotation drive device 22, can be set to any angle, so that articles 10 of various sizes can be stacked on the support 14 in a state where the short ends are standing up, by changing the inclination angle of the second position according to the relationship with the size of the article 10 and the position of the center of gravity. In addition, since the rotation drive device 22 is configured to change the position of the support 14 and adjust the spacing between the pair of side portions 26a, 26b, there is no need to provide a station for changing the position and a station for adjusting the spacing separately, which simplifies the device configuration and prevents the line from becoming long.

[0046] (Example of change) The present invention is not limited to the configurations of the examples, and can be modified as follows, for example. Furthermore, the configurations described in the examples can be modified in various ways within the scope of the present invention, without being limited to the following modifications. (1) The support 14 may have at least the bottom portion 12 and the first restricting portion (restricting portion) 13 and may be configured to support the stack M1 in the second position without causing it to fall. (2) The second posture of the support 14 is not limited to a configuration in which the first regulating portion (regulating portion) 13 is inclined downward toward the bottom 12 with respect to the horizontal plane, and may be a posture in which the first regulating portion 13 is horizontal, but it is preferable that the rotation angle of the second posture of the support 14 with respect to the first posture is an angle smaller than 90 degrees. In addition, the arrangement relationship between the first regulating portion 13 and the second regulating portion 27 in the support unit 15 is reversed front to back, and a configuration in which the bottom 12 is inclined downward from the front side to the rear side in the conveying direction in the second posture can be adopted. In addition, a configuration in which the first regulating portion 13 and the second regulating portion 27 are arranged to face each other in the width direction (a state in which the support 14 in the embodiment is horizontally rotated 90 degrees), and the support 14 is rotated around an axis along the conveying direction to take the first posture and the second posture can be adopted. In addition, when adopting this configuration, the arrangement position of the rotation drive device 22 and the transfer direction of the article 10 by the parallel link robot 17 may be changed accordingly. (3) The article transport device 11 may use various types of conveyors, such as an attachment conveyor or a conveyor controlled by a linear motor drive, instead of a belt conveyor. (4) In the embodiment, the rotation mechanism 21 and the rotation driver 22 are connected in a non-contact manner. However, a contact-type connection may be adopted. (5) The transfer device is not limited to the parallel link robot 17, and various other articulated robots may be used. (6) A configuration can be adopted in which a parallel link robot (transfer device) 17 holds a plurality of articles 10 and transfers them to the support 14. In addition, when the parallel link robot 17 transfers the articles 10 from the article transport device 11 to the support 14, the orientation is changed by rotating the articles 10 horizontally by 90 degrees in the embodiment, but a configuration can be adopted in which the articles 10 are transferred to the support 14 in the same orientation as that of the articles 10 transported by the article transport device 11. In addition, a configuration can be adopted in which, when the parallel link robot 17 transfers the articles 10 to the support 14 in the second orientation, the orientation of the held articles 10 is changed to an orientation in which the small end surface 10b and the flat surface 10a face toward the inclined bottom 12 and first regulating portion 13, and then the articles 10 are transferred.

[0047] (7) The order in which the items 10 are stacked on the support 14 in the second position is not limited to the order in the embodiment as long as the stacked state of the items 10 is not disturbed or collapsed. For example, the items 10 may be transferred to the bottom 12 side of the first regulating section 13 in a set number of layers, and then the items 10 may be transferred to the side away from the bottom 12 in a set number of layers. (8) In the embodiment, after the articles 10 are accumulated on the support 14, the pair of side portions 26a, 26b are moved toward and away from each other by a predetermined distance to align the left and right ends of the articles 10, but this configuration may be provided as needed. (9) The first regulating portion 13 and the second regulating portion 27, which face each other in the conveying direction in the first position of the support 14, can be configured to be movable toward and away from each other relative to each other, and a driving means can be provided to move the two regulating portions 13, 27 toward and away from each other relatively to align the front and rear ends of the accumulated products M1, M2 supported by the support 14 in the conveying direction. (10) As long as the storage device 20 is configured to be able to hold the products M1, M2 in an aligned state, the storage device 20 may be configured so that the support members 40, 40, 41, 41 do not move close to or away from each other. (11) In the storage device 20, if the support members 40, 40, 41, 41 can hold the products M1, M2, the receiving portions 41a, 41a can be omitted. (12) Instead of an attachment conveyor, the box transport device 19 may employ various other conveyors, such as a belt conveyor or a conveyor controlled by a linear motor drive. (13) When the support 14 on which the articles 10 are accumulated is returned from the second position to the first position, the pair of side portions 26a, 26b can be moved toward and away from each other at the same time as the position is returned, so that the left and right edges of the articles 10 are aligned. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 10: article, 10a: flat surface, 10b: small end surface, 11: article conveying device 12 bottom portion, 13 first restricting portion (restricting portion), 14 support body, 15 support unit 16 Unit transport device, 17 Parallel link robot (transfer device), 18 Box body 19 Box conveying device, 20 Storage device, 21 Rotation mechanism, 22 Rotation drive device M1 accumulation, M2 accumulation

Claims

1. A packing system for packing a stack of flat-shaped articles into boxes, comprising: an article transport device that transports the article; a support having a bottom and a restricting portion rising from the bottom so as to be perpendicular to the bottom, the support being capable of supporting the integrated product; a unit transport device that transports a support unit provided with the support body; A transfer device that transfers the article picked up from the article transport device so as to be accumulated on the support; A box conveying device that conveys a box body with an open top; a storage device that picks up the pile of articles transferred to the support by the transfer device all at once and stores them in the box; a rotation mechanism provided in the support unit and capable of rotating the support about an axis parallel to the bottom portion and the restricting portion; a rotation drive device that drives the rotation mechanism to rotate the support and change the position of the support between a first position in which the article can be placed on the bottom and a second position in which a side of the bottom on which the regulating portion is located is displaced downward from the first position and an article can be placed on the regulating portion, When packing the stacked products in a flat state in which the flat surfaces of the products are stacked in a lying position with the flat surfaces of the products facing up and down into a box, the stacked products are stacked in a flat state by transferring a plurality of products to the support body in the first position by the rotation drive device so that the flat surfaces face the bottom by the transfer device, and the stacked products are stored in a box body by the storage device; When packing the stacked products in a standing state with the small end faces of the products facing up and down into a box, the transfer device transfers a plurality of products to the support body, which has been set in the second position by the rotary drive device, so that the flat surface faces the regulating section and the small end face faces the bottom, and then the support body is returned to the first position by the rotary drive device, and the stacked products, in which the products are in a standing state with the small end faces facing up and down, are stored in a box by the storage device. A packaging system characterized by:

2. The packing system described in claim 1, characterized in that the transfer device transfers the articles to the regulating portion of the support body in the second position, with the flat surface of the articles facing the bottom and the small end surface facing the bottom, so that the articles are lined up in a row away from the bottom and stacked in multiple tiers, and when the support body is returned to the first position, the accumulated product is in an accumulated state in which the multiple articles are stacked side by side with their small ends standing up.

3. the unit transport device is provided with a first station, a second station, a third station, and a fourth station for stopping the support unit; The transfer device is configured to transfer an article to the support of the support unit stopped at the second station, and the storage device is configured to pick up the accumulated product transferred to the support of the support unit stopped at the fourth station, 2. The case packing system according to claim 1, wherein the rotary drive devices are provided corresponding to the first station, the third station and the fourth station.

4. the unit transport device is configured such that the support unit is disposed on a shuttle that travels on a circular transport path on which the first to fourth stations are provided by a linear motor drive control; 4. The packing system according to claim 3, wherein the rotation drive device is configured to be non-contact-coupled to and drive the rotation mechanism of the support unit stopped at the corresponding station.

5. The support body includes a pair of side portions opposed to each other in a rotation axis direction of the support body, 2. The case packing system according to claim 1, wherein the support unit includes a width adjustment mechanism for adjusting the distance between the pair of side portions.

6. The box packing system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the support body is set to a size capable of supporting an accumulation of the maximum number of items that can be contained in the box body.

Images