Revolving conveying machine

Abstract

To provide a revolving conveying machine capable of arbitrarily setting the direction of rotation regardless of the direction of revolution to thereby easily cope with various storage modes of conveyed objects.SOLUTION: A revolving conveying machine, including a plurality of arm shafts 13 and a first servomotor 30, is configured such that: the first servomotor causes each of the arm shafts to revolve in one direction around a revolution shaft under a condition that a distance from a revolution shaft 34 to each of the arm shafts serves as a revolution distance; a second servomotor 40 causes a suction nozzle 11 mounted to each of arm parts 10 to rotate normally and reversely; suction setting means sets the direction of a suction surface at a suction operation position to a state facing an object 20 to be conveyed; and interlock control means links the revolution and rotation with the suction by the suction nozzle, causes the suction nozzle to suck the object to be conveyed, causes the object to be conveyed to be circularly conveyed to a suction release position while keeping the suction nozzle in negative pressure to thereby release the suction of the suction nozzle at the suction release position.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a circular conveying machine that rotates a suction nozzle along an arcuate path, sucks an object to be conveyed onto the suction nozzle, takes it in and conveys it, and releases the suction of the suction nozzle at a discharge position to discharge the object.

[0002] More specifically, the present invention relates to a circular conveyor that can arbitrarily set the direction of rotation regardless of the direction of revolution, and can easily accommodate a variety of storage modes for conveyed objects.

[0003] Furthermore, the present invention relates to a circular conveyor that can visually inspect conveyed objects during conveyance and, depending on the inspection results, can change the direction of rotation at one position, discarding defective objects in one direction and conveying only non-defective objects in the other direction.The present invention also relates to a circular conveyor that can be used as an accumulating conveyor that accumulates conveyed objects conveyed from multiple lines at a single downstream accumulation location. [Background technology]

[0004] A technology for circular conveyors has been known in the past in which items to be conveyed, such as food trays and packaging sheets containing powdered medicine, are stored in advance at predetermined positions, and a suction nozzle rotates along a vertical plane to pick up and convey the items one by one, and then discharge them onto a downstream conveyor (Non-Patent Document 1).

[0005] In this rotating conveyor, the arms supporting the radially arranged suction nozzles revolve at a constant angular velocity, and the arms also rotate at a constant angular velocity in the opposite direction to the revolution, allowing the transported objects to be smoothly taken in and discharged.

[0006] Specifically, the arm rotates at a constant angular velocity relative to the revolution so that the suction surface of the suction nozzle faces the surface of the object to be conveyed at the take-in position and faces the placement surface of the downstream conveyor at the discharge position. More specifically, the arm is rotated in the direction opposite to the direction of revolution about the conveyance rotation axis, thereby controlling the orientation of the suction nozzle at the tip of the arm.

[0007] However, because the revolution and rotation of the suction nozzle are linked by mechanical gears and cams, changing the direction of rotation between the revolution and rotation, or changing the timing and angular velocity of the rotation relative to the revolution, requires replacing the mechanical gears and cams, and therefore the circulating conveyor itself.The same applies when changing the number of pick-up locations, for example from three to four, which poses the problem of having to replace the circulating conveyor itself.

[0008] Specifically, even when trying to change the shape or size of a product package, it is necessary to attach it to a flat, smooth position near the center of gravity of the transported item. As a result, the position of the surface to be attached changes depending on the product package, which is difficult to handle with a circular transport machine that uses mechanical gears and cams for circular transport.

[0009] In addition, the direction in which the transported items are stored must be set appropriately depending on the material, shape, etc. For example, in the case of plastic food trays, they are stored stacked so that the adsorbed surface is almost horizontal to prevent deformation of the food trays. On the other hand, in the case of packaging sheets, the adsorbed surface is often not only stacked horizontally, but also stacked vertically or diagonally.

[0010] Even when changing the position and angle of the adsorption surface of the transported object according to the flow of the production line, conventional revolving transport machines, which link revolution and rotation using mechanical gears and cams, have had the problem of difficulty in adapting to the storage conditions of the transported object.

[0011] Patent document 1 discloses a technology for an article delivery device in which pickers that adsorb transported objects are arranged radially on a rotating body that rotates vertically, and the pickers are rotated vertically to transport sheet-like objects in a circular motion.

[0012] The technology described in this document includes a swinging means for swinging the picker along a vertical plane. The swinging means causes the sheet-like objects to pass the normal ejection position and then swings them back to the normal ejection position, thereby reducing the inertial force acting on the sheet-like objects during ejection and ejecting them to the normal ejection position. The document also describes that the picker may be driven by a servo motor to swing back and forth.

[0013] However, even with this technology, the apex of the rotating surface that is used for conveying the sheet-like item is the intake position, and the bottom point of the rotating surface is the discharge position for the sheet-like item, so if you want to change the intake position or discharge position in response to changes in the production line, you have to replace the rotating conveyor itself, which means it is not very versatile.

[0014] Patent Document 2 discloses a technology for an appearance inspection device that inspects the appearance of conveyed objects such as capacitors while conveying them in a circular motion, and then sorts them into good and bad products before discharging them. According to the conveyance technology described in this document, a sun gear and planetary gears are interlocked, and a moving body arranged at equal intervals in a ring is rotated around its axis while revolving around the sun gear.

[0015] Each time the transported object revolves between predetermined, evenly spaced stopping positions in a ring, it rotates a predetermined angle around the central axis of the moving body, and at each of the stopping positions, a surface different from the surface to be attracted is sequentially pointed toward a camera facing the object for visual inspection.Furthermore, after the inspection, a non-defective product ejection position and a defective product disposal position are provided, and defective products are released from the pickup at the defective product disposal position and discarded from the transporter.

[0016] However, in the technology described in Patent Document 2, revolution and rotation are linked by mechanical gear meshing between the sun gear and planetary gears. In order to link the rotation and revolution in any manner so as to change the disposal position, etc., mechanical parts such as planetary gears must be replaced, and there is a problem that, as with the technology described in Patent Document 1, it is not possible to use different rotation directions at one position to discard defective products and transport only non-defective products. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0017] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-137178 Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-203713 [Non-patent literature]

[0018] Non-patent document 1: PACK-SMART INC. YouTube video [searched October 10, 2023], website URL<https: / / www.youtube.com / watch?v=IBWO2Ugsuvg> Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0019] The problem that the present invention aims to solve is to provide a highly versatile circular conveying machine that can arbitrarily set the direction of rotation regardless of the direction of revolution, and can easily accommodate various storage patterns of the transported objects.

[0020] Another object of the present invention is to provide a circular conveyor that inspects the appearance of conveyed objects during circular conveyance, and uses different rotation directions at one position depending on the inspection results, discarding defective products in one direction and conveying only non-defective products in the other direction. [Means for solving the problem]

[0021] A first aspect of the present invention is a circular conveying machine that conveys an object to be conveyed by a suction nozzle, and includes suction means, revolution means, a plurality of rotation means, suction setting means, and interlock control means, wherein the suction means includes the suction nozzle, the revolution means includes a plurality of arm shafts and a first servo motor, each of the arm shafts is arranged around the revolution axis so as to be parallel to the revolution axis, the first servo motor defines the distance from the revolution axis to each of the arm shafts as an orbital distance, and revolves each of the arm shafts in one direction around the revolution axis, and each of the rotation means includes the suction nozzle and a second servo motor, and the second servo motor rotates the arm shaft The distance from the axis to the suction surface of the suction nozzle is defined as a rotation distance, the suction nozzle is rotated and revolved forward and backward, the suction setting means sets the orientation of the suction surface at the suction operating position to a state where it is directly facing the orientation of the surface to be suctioned of the transported object, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution by the revolution means, the rotation by the rotation means, and the suction by the suction nozzle, and in the directly facing state, operates the suction nozzle under negative pressure to suction the transported object, and while the suction nozzle remains under negative pressure, transports the transported object to a suction release position, and releases the suction of the suction nozzle at the suction release position.

[0022] According to the first aspect of the present invention, the first servo motor serves as the revolution means, rotating the arm shaft in one direction around the revolution shaft, and the second servo motor serves as the rotation means, rotating the suction nozzles attached to the arm shafts in both forward and reverse directions around each arm shaft. Because the revolution and rotation are controlled independently by the respective servo motors, the stop position, stop angle, timing, etc. of the suction nozzle's suction surface can be set as desired.

[0023] The rotation direction is preferably a vertical plane direction, but is not limited to this, and may be horizontal or any other direction. The number of arm axes is not limited, and they do not necessarily have to be set at equal intervals. It is preferable that each rotation distance is the same, but is not limited to this.

[0024] The suction setting means sets the orientation of the suction surface of the suction nozzle at the suction operating position so that it faces the orientation of the suction surface of the transported object. If the angle of the suction surface is inclined from the outer circumferential surface of the revolution, the arm may be bent at an intermediate position from the base of the arm shaft to the suction nozzle, and only the tip of the suction nozzle may be inclined in advance so that the suction surface of the suction nozzle faces the suction surface.

[0025] Of course, the arm shaft supporting the suction nozzle can be rotated by a second servo motor to tilt the suction surface. If the revolution distance and rotation distance can be changed and only the suction surface of the suction nozzle can be tilted, it becomes possible to easily accommodate different pickup positions and pickup angles for the transported object, resulting in a highly versatile circulating transport machine.

[0026] The interlocking control means interlocks the rotational drive of the first servo motor, the rotational drive of the second servo motor, and suction by the suction nozzle. Specifically, the interlocking control means interlocks the first servo motor and the second servo motor to orient the suction surface of the suction nozzle directly toward the suction target surface of the transported object at the suction operating position, causing the suction nozzle to suction the transported object. The interlocking control means also interlocks the first servo motor and the second servo motor to orient the suction surface of the suction nozzle toward a discharge surface, such as the surface of a transport conveyor, at the suction release position, causing the suction by the suction nozzle to be released and the transported object to be discharged.

[0027] Furthermore, on the path from the suction activation position to the suction release position, the transported object can be tilted while still being suctioned to avoid collisions between the transported object and parts of the circular transport machine, etc. Furthermore, the transported object can be taken in at multiple take-up positions, and the transported object can be distributed to multiple positions. Also, inspections can be performed during transport, with defective objects rotated in one direction to be discarded, and non-defective objects rotated in the opposite direction to be discharged at the same location.

[0028] According to the first invention, by simply changing the electronic cam settings and suction settings of the two servo motors using the interlocking control means, the circulating conveyor can be applied to a variety of production lines, resulting in an advantageous effect not available in the prior art in that it can be made into a highly versatile circulating conveyor.

[0029] A second aspect of the present invention is the circulating conveyor of the first aspect, wherein the revolution means comprises first connection means having a fixed disk and a movable disk, the rotation means comprises second connection means having an air flow path in a rotary joint, the fixed disk is fixed to a base that also fixes a first servomotor, either the fixed disk or the movable disk is provided with a plurality of concentric annular grooves and a plurality of annular rails, and the other is provided with communicating pipes that connect to each of the annular grooves and contact terminals that slide in contact with each of the annular rails, the fixed disk and the movable disk are arranged to rotate while facing each other and in contact with each other, and power is supplied to the second servomotor by contact between the annular rails and the contact terminals in the first connection means, air is communicated from the annular groove to the communicating pipe, and further in the second connection means, air is communicated from the communicating pipe to the air flow path, generating negative pressure in the suction nozzle.

[0030] The circular conveyor of the second invention comprises a first connecting means which is a pair of disks which slide facing each other, and a second connecting means which rotatably connects the two air flow paths. In the second invention, power is supplied to the second servo motor via the first connecting means, and negative pressure generated by the negative pressure generator is transmitted to the suction nozzle via the first connecting means and the second connecting means.

[0031] Even when the rotary drive shaft of the first servo motor fixed to the base rotates the movable disk and revolves the arm, the air pressure in the communicating pipe and the annular groove is the same because the communicating pipe is connected to either position in the annular groove, and negative pressure is transmitted to the revolving arm. Also, because the air flow path is connected to the communicating pipe by the second connecting means that rotatably connects them, the air flow path does not twist even when the second servo motor rotates the suction nozzle, and negative pressure from the negative pressure generator is transmitted to the suction nozzle.

[0032] According to the second aspect of the present invention, the negative pressure generated by the suction means is smoothly transmitted to the suction nozzle regardless of the rotational angular velocity and rotational direction of the revolution and rotation.

[0033] A third aspect of the present invention is a circulating conveying machine according to the first or second aspect of the present invention, characterized in that, at each of the suction operating position and the suction release position, the interlocking control means causes the rotation direction of the rotation means to be opposite to the rotation direction of the revolution means, and controls the passing speed of the suction nozzle to be slow at the suction operating position and the suction release position.

[0034] According to the third invention, the revolution of the arm by the revolution means and the rotation of the suction nozzle around the arm axis are in opposite directions, so the speed at which the arm revolves around the suction nozzle is reduced by the speed at which the suction nozzle rotates around its axis, and the passing speed of the suction nozzle at the suction activation position and the suction release position can be reduced.

[0035] At the suction operating position, the passing speed should be set to a speed that does not cause suction errors, depending on the material, shape, etc. of the transported object, and at the suction release position, the passing speed should be set to a speed that corresponds to the transport mode of the downstream transport device, specifically, in the case of an intermittent conveyor or an accumulating conveyor, the passing speed should be stopped, and in the case of a continuous conveyor, the passing speed should be adjusted to match the movement speed of the continuous conveyor.

[0036] The third aspect of the present invention has the advantageous effect of making it difficult for suction errors to occur at the suction operating position and difficult for the discharge position to shift at the suction release position. This can be applied to conveyed objects that are easily deformed, such as food trays, and can also be applied to a stacking conveyor for PTP sheets and the like that are stacked at the discharge position, thereby increasing the versatility of the circular conveyor.

[0037] A fourth aspect of the present invention is a revolving conveying machine according to the first or second aspect of the invention, further comprising an appearance inspection means, wherein the appearance inspection means is arranged between the suction operating position and the suction release position, and at a defective product disposal position downstream of the appearance inspection means, the interlocking control means controls the revolution means and the rotation means in an interlocking manner so that the rotational revolution and the revolutional revolution are in the same direction and the suction by the suction nozzle is released, thereby disposing of the transported product determined to be a defective product by the appearance inspection means.

[0038] When the transported object is a non-defective product, it is preferable to rotate the suction nozzle in the opposite direction to the revolution direction, as this will slow down the discharge speed. However, in order to separate defective products from non-defective products and discard the defective products at the same revolution position, it is preferable to switch the rotation direction when discharging non-defective products.

[0039] The interlocking control means may control the second servo motor, which constitutes the rotation means, to switch the rotation direction in accordance with the result of the visual inspection. According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, by controlling the rotation direction of the second servo motor in accordance with the result of the visual inspection, it is possible to achieve the effect of sorting non-defective and defective products.

[0040] A fifth aspect of the present invention is a circular conveying machine according to the third aspect of the invention, further comprising a conveying conveyor downstream, wherein the discharge and feeding speed is set to the speed at which the conveyed object is fed along the conveying conveyor after the suction nozzle releases its suction, and wherein, at the suction release position, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution means and the rotation means to make the discharge and feeding speed equal to the conveying speed of the conveying conveyor.

[0041] Here, "along the conveyor" refers to the horizontal direction when the conveyor conveys horizontally, and to the inclined direction of the conveyor when the conveyor conveys obliquely. When the conveying surface of the conveyor continuously conveys horizontally downstream, the speed of the rotational revolution caused by the second servo motor and the speed of the revolutional revolution caused by the first servo motor can be changed at the discharge position of the conveyed object, and the difference between the speed of the rotational revolution and the speed of the revolutional revolution can be set as the moving speed of the conveying surface of the conveyor.

[0042] According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, even if the downstream conveyor is a continuous conveyor, the conveyed objects can be discharged without disrupting the intervals at which they are discharged, thereby achieving the effect of sending out the conveyed objects at more even intervals.

[0043] A sixth aspect of the present invention is the circular conveying machine of the fourth aspect, further comprising a conveying conveyor downstream, wherein the discharge and feeding speed is the speed at which the conveyed object is fed along the conveying conveyor after the suction nozzle releases its suction, and wherein, at the suction release position, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution means and the rotation means to make the discharge and feeding speed equal to the conveying speed of the conveying conveyor.

[0044] A seventh aspect of the present invention is a circular conveying machine according to the third aspect, further comprising an accumulation conveying machine downstream, wherein at the suction release position, the interlocking control means links the revolution means and the rotation means to stop the discharge and sending out of the suction surface, and accumulates the conveyed object that has been released from suction and discharged on top of the pile that was previously stacked on the accumulation conveying machine.

[0045] The position of the stacking surface of the stacking conveyor is fixed in advance, and the stack is conveyed after a predetermined number of transported objects have been accumulated on the stacking surface. Here, "stopping the discharge / sending of the suction surface" means that the speed due to rotation is made to match the speed due to revolution, and the transported objects are discharged while the suction surface is stopped. The attracted transported objects are stacked on top of the previously stacked stack, and after a predetermined number of stacks have been formed, the stack is sent out.

[0046] According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the objects conveyed by each of the plurality of suction nozzles can be accumulated at a predetermined accumulation position and then conveyed downstream. This has the effect of eliminating the need for a separate accumulation conveyor downstream, even if the objects are manufactured on multiple production lines and taken into the circular conveyor.

[0047] The eighth invention of the present invention is a circular conveying machine of the fourth invention, further comprising an accumulation conveying machine downstream, wherein at the suction release position, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution means and the rotation means to stop the discharge and sending out of the suction surface, and the conveyed object that has been released from suction and discharged is accumulated on top of the accumulation body that was previously stacked on the accumulation conveying machine. [Effects of the Invention]

[0048] According to the first aspect of the present invention, by simply changing the electronic cam settings and suction settings of the two servo motors using the interlocking control means, the circulating conveyor can be applied to a variety of production lines, resulting in an advantageous effect not available in the prior art in that it can be made into a highly versatile circulating conveyor. According to the second aspect of the present invention, the negative pressure generated by the suction means is smoothly transmitted to the suction nozzle regardless of the rotational angular velocity and rotational direction of the revolution and rotation. According to the third aspect of the present invention, there is an advantageous effect that suction errors are unlikely to occur at the suction operating position, and the discharge position is unlikely to shift at the suction release position.

[0049] According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, there is an effect that non-defective products and defective products can be sorted by controlling the rotation direction of the second servo motor according to the result of the visual inspection. According to the fifth or sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to deliver the objects at more even intervals. According to the seventh or eighth aspect of the present invention, even if the transported objects are manufactured on multiple production lines and taken into a circular transport machine, they can be discharged downstream as a single stack, which has the effect of eliminating the need for a separate stacking transport machine downstream. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0050] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a circulating conveyor (first embodiment). [Figure 2] 1 is a diagram showing the main configuration of a circulating conveyor (first embodiment); [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an interlocking control means (first embodiment). [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of interlocking control of each position (first embodiment). [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of interlocking control settings (first embodiment). [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of interlocking control settings (first embodiment). [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of interlocking control settings (first embodiment). [Figure 8] Explanatory diagram of the accumulation conveyor (Example 2) [Figure 9] 2 is an explanatory diagram of article transport (Example 3). DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0051] The circular conveyor of the present invention is a circular conveyor in which a first servo motor and a second servo motor are each controlled by an electronic cam, multiple arm shafts are revolved in one direction around a revolution axis by the first servo motor, and suction nozzles are rotated around each arm shaft in any direction by the second servo motor.This allows the circular conveyor to take in objects transported in a predetermined orientation, perform visual inspections during the circular transport, and sort into good and bad products, as well as discharge according to the needs of downstream conveyors such as intermittent transport and accumulation transport. [Example]

[0052] A circulating conveyor 1 of a first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7. FIG. 1 shows the structure of the circulating conveyor 1. FIG. 1(A) shows a front view, FIG. 1(B) shows a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1(A), and FIG. 1(C) shows a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 1(A). For ease of understanding, the diagonal lines indicating the cross section are only partially shown. Furthermore, the imaging means constituting the visual inspection means may be positioned at any position, but an example in which it is located at a horizontal position is shown by a solid line, and an example in which it is located at an upper position is shown by a thick dashed line (see FIG. 1(A)). FIG. 2 shows the main configuration of the circulating conveyor 1, FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of the interlocking control means, FIG. 4 shows the interlocking state of each position, and FIGS. 5 to 7 show the settings of the electronic cam.

[0053] The circulating conveyor 1 rotates suction nozzles 11 attached to the tips of four arms 10. The circulating conveyor 1 has a first position (shown as (1) in Fig. 1(A) and Figs. 5 to 7, the same applies below) as a suction operating position where it picks up a conveyed object 20, a second position (2) where it performs a visual inspection of the conveyed object 20, a third position (3) as a suction release position where it discards defective products 21, and a fourth position (4) as a suction release position where it discharges non-defective products 22 onto a conveyor. The circulating conveyor 1 is equipped with a first servo motor 30 (see Fig. 1(C)) that constitutes a revolution means and four second servo motors 40 that constitute a rotation means.

[0054] The first servo motor 30 is fixed to the bottom plate of a base 31 having an L-shaped cross section (see FIG. 1(C)), with its rotary drive shaft penetrating a wall plate 32 and the rotary drive shaft 33 serving as a revolution axis 34. A fixed disk 36 serving as a first connection means 35 is fixedly provided on the side of the wall plate on which the arm portion 10 revolves. The tip of the rotary drive shaft 33 penetrates the wall plate 32 and the fixed disk 36 and is connected to a movable disk 37 which rotates around the revolution axis 34. The movable disk 37 rotates around the revolution axis 34 while sliding against the fixed disk 36.

[0055] An annular groove 38 and an annular rail 39 are formed concentrically around the revolution axis 34 on the fixed disk 36 on the side of the surface that comes into contact with the movable disk 37. The movable disk 37 is provided with a communication pipe 41 that contacts the annular groove 38 to communicate air, and a contact terminal 42 that contacts the annular rail 39 to supply power to the second servo motor 40. The annular groove 38 and the communication pipe 41, the annular rail 39 and the contact terminal 42 are provided in a number that corresponds to the number of rotation means, respectively.

[0056] A cross-shaped arm shaft support plate 43 is fixed to the tip of the rotary drive shaft 33 of the first servo motor. The arm shaft support plate 43 serves as a support for the arm 10, and is rotated about the center of the intersection of the cross by the rotary drive of the first servo motor 30. A second servo motor 40 is fixed to the arm shaft support plate 43 on the outside of each of the crosses. The rotary shaft 44 of each second servo motor passes through a through-hole provided in the arm shaft support plate 43. The position where the arm 10, which has a suction nozzle attached to its tip, is supported is defined as the arm shaft 13.

[0057] A gear that meshes with the shaft support base of the arm 10 and the tip of the rotation shaft 44 of the second servo motor 40 are respectively attached, and the arm 10 to which each suction nozzle 11 is attached is rotated around the arm shaft 13 by the rotation drive of the rotation shaft 44 of the second servo motor, while the arm 10 is rotated around the revolution axis 34 by the rotation drive of the rotation drive shaft 33 of the first servo motor 30.

[0058] In other words, each arm 10 rotates around the arm axis 13 while revolving around the revolution axis 34. The distance from the revolution axis 34 to the arm axis 13 is the revolution radius (α: see FIG. 1(C)), and the distance from the arm axis 13 to the suction nozzle 11 is the rotation radius (β: see FIG. 1(C)).

[0059] The arm 10 is a hollow shaft, with a suction nozzle 11 attached to the tip of the hollow shaft, and the base of the hollow shaft is connected to a second connecting means 45 which has an air flow path in a rotary joint. The air flow path from the second connecting means 45 to the movable disk 37 is connected to a communication pipe 41 of the movable disk, and the communication pipe 41 opens to the corresponding annular groove 38 of the fixed disk, allowing negative pressure air to flow.

[0060] In the circulating conveyor 1 of the first embodiment, the fixed disk has the annular groove 38 and the movable disk has the communicating pipe 41, but it goes without saying that the communicating pipe 41 may be provided on the fixed disk and the annular groove 38 on the movable disk to allow negative pressure air to circulate. Similarly, either the annular rail 39 or the contact terminal 42 may be provided on one side of the fixed disk 35 and the other on the movable disk 37.

[0061] In the negative pressure generator 50 constituting the suction means, air pressure is controlled by an interlocking control means 500 (see FIG. 3) so that negative pressure is generated in each suction nozzle 11 at the required timing. The negative pressure generated by the negative pressure generator 50 is transmitted in this order to the annular groove 38 of the fixed disk, the communicating pipe 41 of the movable disk, the air flow path in the second connecting means 45, the hollow shaft of the arm 10, and the suction nozzle 11, and the transported object 20 is sucked onto the suction nozzle 11. In addition, the negative pressure is released in the negative pressure generator 50 at the appropriate timing, and the transported object 20 is discarded or ejected from the suction nozzle 11.

[0062] Air is allowed to circulate by contact between the annular groove 38 of the fixed disk and the communicating tube 41 of the movable disk, so that even when the rotary drive shaft 33 is rotated by the first servo motor 30 and the arm 10 revolves, negative pressure air can circulate from the communicating tube 41 to the suction nozzle 11 via the air flow path of the second connecting means 45.

[0063] Furthermore, because negatively pressurized air is circulated to the suction nozzle 11 via the rotary joint formed by the second connecting means 45, the air flow path does not twist even when the arm 10 rotates forward and backward, and the negative pressure generated by the negative pressure generator 50 is transmitted to the suction nozzle 11. Furthermore, power to the second servo motor 40 is maintained regardless of the rotation of the arm shaft support plate 43 due to the contact between the annular rail 39 of the fixed disk and the contact terminal 42 of the movable disk.

[0064] The revolution direction of the arm 10 is not limited, but may be one direction, and in the circulating conveyor 1, the arm shaft support plate 43 is revolved clockwise (see the dashed line in Figure 1). The rotation direction of the arm 10 is not limited, and the rotation can be controlled in either direction relative to the revolution direction.

[0065] The circulating conveyor 1 comprises a revolution means 100, a rotation means 200, a suction means 300, an appearance inspection means 400, and an interlocking control means 500 that interlocks the operations of these means (see FIG. 2). The revolution means 100 comprises a first servo motor 30 fixed to a base 31, an arm shaft support plate 43, and a first connection means 35 consisting of a fixed disk 36 and a movable disk 37. The rotation means 200 comprises a second servo motor 40 fixed to the arm shaft support plate 43, an arm 10, a suction nozzle 11, and a second connection means 45 equipped with a rotary joint that allows air to flow through.

[0066] The suction means 300 comprises a suction nozzle 11, a suction setting means 60, and a negative pressure generator 50. The suction setting means 60 positions the suction surface of the suction nozzle 11 directly opposite the surface to be suctioned of the transported object 20. The interlocking control means 500, which controls the rotational drive of the first servo motor 30 and the second servo motor 40, may function as the suction setting means 60, which positions the suction surface and the surface to be suctioned directly opposite each other along the path of rotation of the arm 10. Furthermore, the tip of the arm 10 may have a tiltable arm structure, and this arm structure may be included in the suction setting means 60.

[0067] The appearance inspection means 400 comprises an imaging means 401 and an appearance determination means 402. The camera constituting the imaging means 401 is caused to photograph a surface of the transported object 20 other than the surface to be attracted, and the appearance determination means 402 is caused to determine whether the transported object is good or bad. The surface other than the surface to be attracted is not limited to the reverse side of the surface to be attracted; for example, if the transported object is a PTP sheet, the flat surface of the PTP sheet may be used as the surface to be attracted, and the color, shape, etc. of the tablet protrusions may be photographed from the side to determine whether the object is good or bad.

[0068] The interlocking control means 500 may be a production PC, a programmable logic controller (hereinafter referred to as PLC), etc. that controls the operation of the circulating conveyor. The production PC or PLC, etc., is made up of control means 510 made up of central processing means and storage means 520 made up of memory, HDD, etc. (See FIG. 3).

[0069] The control means controls the operation of the first servo motor 30, the second servo motor 40, and the negative pressure generator 50 along the path from (1) to (4), and controls the rotation direction, rotation speed, and negative pressure state of the suction nozzle 11. The memory means 520 stores in advance operation processing rules for the first servo motor 30, the second servo motor 40, and the suction nozzle 11 along the path from (1) to (4).

[0070] The control means 510, which constitutes the interlocking control means, comprises revolution position setting means 511, first electronic cam angular velocity setting means 512, second electronic cam angular velocity setting means 513, suction state setting means 514, and appearance determination means 402. The revolution position setting means 511 sets the revolution position at which the arm 10 and suction nozzle 11 perform a predetermined operation. In the first embodiment, the arm 10 is positioned at the tip of the cross shape, so positions (1) to (4) are set based on four revolution positions within the revolution path. However, if one revolution is divided into three equal parts, only three revolution positions need to be set. It goes without saying that an intermediate position between (1) to (4) may also be set as the revolution position.

[0071] A first electronic cam angular velocity setting means 512 sets the angular velocity of the first servo motor 30, and a second electronic cam angular velocity setting means 513 sets the angular velocity of the second servo motor 40. A suction state setting means 514 sets whether or not to enable negative pressure in the suction nozzle 11 at the revolution positions (1) to (4) set by the revolution position setting means, thereby suctioning the transported object 20. An appearance determination means 402 determines whether or not the object 20 is non-defective based on the appearance of the photographed object 20.

[0072] The memory means 520, which constitutes the interlocking control means, functions as the revolution position memory means 521 and stores (1) to (4), etc., set by the revolution position setting means. The first electronic cam angular velocity memory means 522 stores the angular velocity of the first servo motor 30 set by the first electronic cam angular velocity setting means 512 at the set revolution position. The second electronic cam angular velocity memory means 523 stores the rotation direction and angular velocity of the second servo motor 40 set by the second electronic cam angular velocity setting means 513 at the set revolution position. The suction state memory means 524 stores the negative pressure state of the suction nozzle at the set revolution position. The judgment condition memory means 525 stores the criteria for judging the quality of the transported object 20 based on the appearance of the transported object 20 imaged by the imaging means 401.

[0073] The operation process of the circulating conveyor 1, the direction of revolution, the direction of rotation, and the negative pressure state in (1) to (4) will be specifically described with reference to Fig. 4. In the circulating conveyor 1, the suction nozzle 11 picks up the conveyed object 20 in (1), the imaging means 401 captures an image of the appearance of the conveyed object 20 in (2), and between (2) and (3), the appearance of the conveyed object 20 is compared with the judgment conditions stored in the judgment condition storage means, and the appearance judgment means 402 judges the conveyed object 20 as either a good or a defective item. In (3), the defective item 21 is discarded, and in (4), the good item 22 is discharged onto the continuous transfer conveyor 70 (see Fig. 1(A)).

[0074] The first servo motor 30 rotates in one direction at the same angular velocity at all positions (1) to (4), and the arm shaft 13, which is supported on the arm shaft support plate 43, revolves clockwise (see the dashed arrow in Figure 1(A)). The second servo motor rotates the arm shaft 13 on its axis at each of positions (1) to (4) to suit pickup, photography, disposal, and discharge (see the dashed arrow in Figure 1(A)). The suction nozzle 11 is put under negative pressure at (1), the negative pressure continues at (2), the negative pressure is released in the case of a defective product at (3), the negative pressure continues in the case of a good product, and the negative pressure is released for both good and defective products at (4).

[0075] 5 to 7, the interlocking control state of the first servo motor 30, the second servo motor 40, and the negative pressure generator 50 will be described in detail. In Fig. 5 to Fig. 7, row (A) shows the angular velocity of the first servo motor 30, row (B) shows the angular velocity of the second servo motor 40, and row (C) shows the negative pressure state of the suction nozzle 11 caused by the negative pressure generator 50. Fig. 5 shows the interlocking state from when the transported object is sucked onto the suction nozzle until an image is taken of it, Fig. 6 shows the interlocking state from when an image is taken until a defective product is discarded, and Fig. 7 shows the interlocking state from when an image is taken until a non-defective product is discharged.

[0076] First, because the arm 10 revolves clockwise at a constant speed, the angular velocity of the first servo motor 30 is constant at K (rad / min; hereafter, units are omitted) from (1) through (4) and back to (1). In (1), the speed of the arm 10's clockwise rotation due to revolution is slowed down so that the suction surface of the suction nozzle 11 can be positioned directly opposite the surface of the workpiece 20 to be suctioned. The arm 10 is rotated slightly clockwise before reaching (1), and the rotational drive of the second servo motor 40 is controlled so that the arm 10 rotates counterclockwise as it passes through (1). If the angular velocity due to the rotation of the arm 10 in (1) is set to -a = K × (α / β), the angular velocity due to the rotation cancels out the angular velocity due to the revolution, and the workpiece 20 can be suctioned by the suction nozzle 11 in a directly facing state.

[0077] The angular velocity of the rotation orbit by the second servo motor 40 from (1) to (2) may be set arbitrarily so that both the angular velocity and the orbit direction change smoothly so that the transported load 20 does not interfere with other objects and the rotational movement is not excessive (see the dashed line from a to b). In (2), depending on the state when the arm 10 arrives at (2), the arm 10 may be rotated counterclockwise at an angular velocity so that the transported load 20 faces the lens of the imaging means 401 (see FIG. 5(B)).

[0078] If the arm 10 is already in a state where it crosses the arm shaft support plate 43 laterally in (2) (see the arm in (2) solid line), then -bs0 should be an angular velocity close to 0. On the other hand, if the arm is already in a state where it is adsorbing the transported object in (1) in (2) (see the arm in (2) dashed line), then when passing in front of the lens, it should rotate at an angular velocity -bs1 that faces the lens directly (see Figure 5(B)).

[0079] Since the image capture is instantaneous, the transported object 20 only needs to be directly facing the camera as it passes, and the rotation direction may be either clockwise or counterclockwise. For example, when the camera is located above the revolution center axis (FIG. 1(A)), the camera may be rotated in the same direction as the revolution direction (see FIG. 7(B) bu). However, in order to slow down the passing speed during image capture without excessively increasing the rotation speed, it is preferable to rotate the transported object 20 counterclockwise after it has passed the camera (see the dashed dotted line in FIG. 5(B)).

[0080] Between (2) and (3), the product is judged to be a good or bad product. If the transported object 20 is judged to be a bad product 21, the second servo motor 40 is rotationally driven to rotate the arm 10 clockwise, which is the same as the revolution direction, and the bad product is rotated at an arbitrary angular velocity d at (3) (see line (B) in Figure 6), the suction is released (see line (C) in Figure 6), and the bad product 21 is discarded (see (A) in Figure 1). If the transported object 20 is judged to be a good product, the arm 10 is rotated counterclockwise, which is the opposite direction to the revolution direction, and passes through (3) with the transported object 20 still being suctioned (see Figure 4).

[0081] At (4), the negative pressure is released and the non-defective products 22 are discharged (see FIG. 1(A)). The movement speed of the non-defective products due to the angular velocity p of counterclockwise rotation caused by the rotation orbit is made greater than the movement speed due to the angular velocity K of clockwise rotation caused by the revolution (see FIG. 7(B)). In other words, the movement speed due to "(angular velocity of counterclockwise rotation: p) - (angular velocity of clockwise rotation: K)" should be made to match the "movement speed of the continuous transport conveyor." By doing so, the continuous transport conveyor 70 can discharge the transported objects 20 at predetermined intervals at (4).

[0082] If the transported object 20 is a defective product 21, the defective product has already been discarded in (3), and the arm 10 may be in the same mode as the arm 10 that circulated the transported object of a non-defective product 22 before returning to (1). The arm 10 that discharged the non-defective product in (4) may be rotated slightly to the right before returning to (1), and the rotation of the second servo motor 40 may be controlled so that the arm 10 rotates to the left when passing through (1) (see the dashed line in Figure 7(B)). [Example]

[0083] In the second embodiment, a circulating conveyor 2 used as the collecting conveyor 80 will be described with reference to Fig. 8. The structure of the circulating conveyor 2, the interlocking mechanism of the interlocking control means 500, and the like are the same as those of the circulating conveyor 1 of the first embodiment, and therefore the structure, mechanism, and the like of the circulating conveyor 2 are the same as those of the first embodiment, and detailed description thereof will be omitted, and only the aspect of the collecting conveyor 80 that collects the packing sheets 23 will be briefly described.

[0084] Fig. 8(A) is an explanatory diagram illustrating an accumulating and conveying machine 80 that takes in packing sheets 23, 23 manufactured at different upstream locations with suction nozzles 11, 11 from the left (1) and above (2) in Fig. 8, visually inspects them between (2) and (3), discards defective products at (3), and accumulates and conveys non-defective products at (4). Fig. 8(B) is an explanatory diagram illustrating the discarding of defective products and then accumulation of non-defective products, and Fig. 8(C) is an explanatory diagram illustrating the state in which the accumulated stack 24 is pushed to the side.

[0085] In (1) and (2), the arm pivotally supported on arm pivot support plate 43 is revolved clockwise by a first servo motor. In (1) and (2), the arm is rotated counterclockwise by a second servo motor so that suction nozzle 11 faces directly against packaging sheet 23 to pick up and take in the same. In (3), the arm that has picked up a defective product is rotated clockwise, and the arm that has picked up a non-defective product is rotated counterclockwise, and in (4), the speed of the rotation cancels out the speed of the revolution, stopping the horizontal movement of arm 10. The newly conveyed packaging sheet 23 is then stacked on top of stack 24 of previously discharged packaging sheets (see FIG. 8(B)).

[0086] After (2), to sort out defective products through visual inspection and then discard the defective products, the second servo motor 40 rotates the arm 10 in the same direction as the revolution direction of the first servo motor 30, and the defective packaging sheet 23 is discarded in a disposal location in (3). After the defective products have been discarded, the direction of rotation of the second servo motor 40 is reversed to avoid interference with the disposal location (see FIG. 8(B)).

[0087] After a predetermined number of good packaging sheets 23 are accumulated at the accumulation position to form an accumulation 24, the accumulation placing table 25 is slid downward and pushed onto the accumulation conveying rail 26 by the push rod 27, and the accumulation 24 is conveyed downstream (see Figure 8(C)). [Example]

[0088] In the third embodiment, a circular conveyor 3 that places contents in a container and conveys them intermittently will be briefly described with reference to Fig. 9. The circular conveyor 3 is a circular conveyor that adjoins a suction nozzle at (1), adjoins a container at (2), and rotates the contents and container together in one revolution at (4), placing the contents in the container.

[0089] The circular conveyor 3 functions as a circular conveyor that conveys two different types of articles in a circular manner, stacking contents 28 conveyed later on top of a container 27 that was conveyed earlier. Contents 28 are taken in from the upstream (1), and containers 27 are taken in from the downstream (2), and they are conveyed alternately. Because contents 28 and containers 27 are conveyed alternately, when containers 27 are placed on the intermittent transfer conveyor 71, contents 28 remain attached to the upstream arm 10.

[0090] With the intermittent transfer conveyor 71 stopped, the speed of rotation is controlled so as to cancel out the speed of revolution of the container 27, and the container 27 is placed on the intermittent transfer conveyor 71. After the container 27 is placed, the arm shaft support plate 43 makes a quarter revolution, and the rotation and revolution are controlled in the same way as when the container 27 was placed, and the contents 28 are placed in the container 27. Then, the intermittent transfer conveyor 71 is moved horizontally.

[0091] Furthermore, when the arm shaft support plate 43 has made a quarter revolution, the container 27 is sucked to the downstream side of the suction nozzle 11 at the end of two consecutive arms 10 that have neither the container 27 nor the contents 28 sucked to the suction nozzle 11, and the contents 28 are sucked to the upstream side and transported in a circular movement. Similarly, the container 27 and the contents 28 may be circulated thereafter.

[0092] (others) The embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative in all respects and should not be considered limiting. The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above description, but is defined by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims. In the first embodiment, the interlocking control of the first and second servo motors is explained using angular velocity for ease of understanding, but it goes without saying that the interlocking control may also be performed using angular acceleration. In the first embodiment, an example of a conveyor in which one rotational orbital surface is provided on the revolution shaft is shown, but it goes without saying that a plurality of rotational orbital surfaces may be provided on the revolution shaft to form a revolving conveyor that simultaneously picks up and conveys a plurality of conveyed objects. In the first embodiment, when the conveying direction of the continuous transfer conveyor is set to the left, the speed due to revolution is set to be greater than the speed due to rotation, and when the conveying direction is set to the right, the speed due to revolution is set to be smaller than the speed due to rotation. [Explanation of symbols]

[0093] 1,2,3...Circulating conveyor, 10...Arm, 11...Suction nozzle, 13...Arm shaft, 20...Object to be transported, 21...Defective item, 22...Good item, 23...Saving sheet, 24... stack, 25... stack placement table, 26... stack transport rail, 27... push rod, 27...Container, 28...Contents, 30...first servo motor, 31...base, 32...wall plate, 33...rotation drive shaft, 34... revolution axis, 35... first connecting means, 36... fixed disk, 37... movable disk, 38...annular groove, 39...annular rail, 40... second servo motor, 41... communicating pipe, 42... contact terminal, 43... arm shaft support plate, 44... rotation shaft, 45... second connection means, 50... negative pressure generating device, 60... suction setting means, 70... continuous transfer conveyor, 71...Intermittent conveyor, 80...Accumulation conveyor, 100...revolution means, 200...rotation means, 300...adsorption means, 400... appearance inspection means, 401... imaging means, 402... appearance determination means, 500... Interlocking control means, 510... Control means, 520... Storage means, 511... revolution position setting means, 512... first electronic cam angular velocity setting means, 513... second electronic cam angular velocity setting means, 514... adsorption state setting means, 521... revolution position storage means, 522... first electronic cam angular velocity storage means, 523... second electronic cam angular velocity storage means, 524... adsorption state storage means, 525...Judgment condition storage means

Claims

1. In a circular conveyor that conveys an object by a suction nozzle, The device includes an adsorption means, a revolution means, a plurality of rotation means, an adsorption setting means, and an interlocking control means, the suction means includes the suction nozzle, the revolution means includes a plurality of arm shafts and a first servo motor; Each of the arm shafts is arranged around the revolution axis so as to be parallel to the revolution axis, a first servo motor, which defines a distance from the revolution axis to each of the arm shafts as an orbital distance, and causes each of the arm shafts to revolve around the revolution axis in one direction; each of the rotation means includes the suction nozzle and a second servo motor; a second servo motor, which rotates the suction nozzle forward and backward, with the distance from the arm shaft to the suction surface of the suction nozzle as a rotation distance; the suction setting means sets the orientation of the suction surface at the suction operating position to a state in which the suction surface faces the orientation of the suction target surface of the transported object; the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution by the revolution means, the rotation by the rotation means, and the suction by the suction nozzle; In the facing state, the suction nozzle is operated under negative pressure to suction the transported object; While the suction nozzle is kept operating under negative pressure, the transported object is transported in a circular movement to a suction release position, and the suction of the suction nozzle is released at the suction release position. A circular conveyor characterized by:

2. the revolving means includes a first connecting means having a fixed disk and a movable disk; the rotation means comprises second connection means having an air flow passage in the rotatable joint; the fixed disk is fixed to a base that fixes a first servo motor; a plurality of annular grooves and a plurality of annular rails are concentrically formed on either the fixed disk or the movable disk, and the other disk is provided with a communication pipe that communicates with each of the annular grooves and a contact terminal that slides in contact with each of the annular rails; The fixed disk and the movable disk are arranged to rotate while facing each other and in contact with each other, In the first connecting means, power is supplied to the second servo motor by contact between the annular rail and the contact terminal, and air is communicated from the annular groove to the communication pipe, Furthermore, in the second connecting means, air is communicated from the communication pipe to the air flow path, generating a negative pressure in the suction nozzle.

2. The circular transport device according to claim 1.

3. At each of the suction operating position and the suction release position, The interlocking control means The rotation direction of the rotation means is set to be opposite to the rotation direction of the revolution means, a passing speed of the suction nozzle is controlled to be slow at the suction operating position and the suction releasing position; 3. The circulating conveyor according to claim 1 or 2.

4. Further, a visual inspection means is included, the visual inspection means is disposed between the suction operating position and the suction releasing position, At a defective product disposal position downstream of the visual inspection means, the interlocking control means controls the revolution means and the rotation means in an interlocking manner to make the rotation and the revolution in the same direction, and releases the suction by the suction nozzle, thereby disposing of the transported object determined to be a defective product by the visual inspection means.

3. The circulating conveyor according to claim 1 or 2.

5. Furthermore, a transport conveyor is provided downstream, a discharge / feeding speed is a speed at which the transported object is sent along the transport conveyor after the suction nozzle releases suction; At the suction release position, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution means and the rotation means to make the discharge / feeding speed coincide with the transport speed of the transport conveyor.

4. The circular transport machine according to claim 3.

6. Furthermore, a transport conveyor is provided downstream, a discharge / feeding speed is a speed at which the transported object is sent along the transport conveyor after the suction nozzle releases suction; At the suction release position, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution means and the rotation means to make the discharge / feeding speed coincide with the transport speed of the transport conveyor.

5. The circular conveyor according to claim 4.

7. Furthermore, a collecting conveyor is provided downstream, At the suction release position, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution means and the rotation means to stop the discharge / feeding of the suction surface, and the transported object that has been released from suction and discharged is accumulated on top of the stack that was previously piled up on the accumulation conveyor.

4. The circular transport machine according to claim 3.

8. Furthermore, a collecting conveyor is provided downstream, At the suction release position, the interlocking control means interlocks the revolution means and the rotation means to stop the discharge / feeding of the suction surface, and the transported object that has been released from suction and discharged is accumulated on top of the stack that was previously piled up on the accumulation conveyor.

5. The circular conveyor according to claim 4.

Images