Bag sealing machine and bag sealing method

Abstract

To provide a bag sealing machine that uses ordinary bags and can automatically seal the bags without the risk of foreign matter getting into the factory line when the bags are opened.SOLUTION: A bag sealing machine comprises: a hollow winding shaft member for wrapping a bag around its outer peripheral surface; one or more winding handles that grip the opening side of the bag and wrap the opening side of the bag around the winding shaft member, forming a ring-shaped part on the opening side of the bag; a knotting handle that is disposed within the winding shaft member and grips the opening side of the bag at its tip further towards the opening side than the ring-shaped part; and a knotting handle drive unit that slides the knotting handle within the winding shaft member in the axial direction of the winding shaft member and moves it until the opening side part of the bag gripped by the knotting handle passes through the ring-shaped part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a bag sealing machine and a bag sealing method for sealing the mouth of a bag filled with a seasoning. [Background technology]

[0002] In the prepared food factories for supermarkets and convenience stores, when cooking, seasonings are used in the unit amounts packaged by the ingredient manufacturer, and also in fractional amounts less than the unit amount.When using fractional amounts of seasonings, the required amount of seasoning is measured in a measuring room or the like and filled into bags, and after measuring, the neck of the bag is sealed by a worker, for example, by tying it by hand, before being transported to the place where the seasonings are used.

[0003] In recent years, factories that produce prepared foods have been working to reduce the number of workers required in each process, and there has been a desire to automate the bag sealing process as well.Typical automatic bag sealing machines have included devices that seal bags by binding them with tape or clips, or devices that seal bags by heat sealing.

[0004] However, when sealing a bag using conventional equipment, there is a risk that the tape or clip may be damaged or lost when the bag is opened, or that the heat-sealed portion may break and fragment, which could result in foreign matter being mixed into the prepared food.

[0005] In response to this, Patent Document 1 discloses a device that seals a bag by tying strings that extend from the mouth of the bag in one direction and the other in the width direction. With this device, the string is normally integrated with the bag and does not separate, which makes it possible to relatively reduce the risk of foreign matter getting into the prepared food. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5948310 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] However, the device of Patent Document 1 has a problem in that it requires the use of a special bag with a string attached integrally to the opening, which increases costs.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a bag sealing machine and a bag sealing method that can automatically seal general-purpose bags without the risk of foreign matter being mixed into the factory line when the bags are opened. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The bag sealing machine of the present invention is characterized by comprising: a hollow winding shaft member for winding a bag around its outer peripheral surface; one or more winding grippers that grip the portion of the bag on the opening side and wrap the opening side of the bag around the winding shaft member, forming a ring-shaped portion on the opening side of the bag; a knotting gripper that is disposed within the winding shaft member and has its tip gripping the portion of the bag further on the opening side than the ring-shaped portion; and a knotting gripper drive unit that slides the knotting gripper within the winding shaft member in the axial direction of the winding shaft member and moves it until the portion of the bag on the opening side gripped by the knotting gripper passes through the ring-shaped portion.

[0010] In addition, the bag sealing machine of the present invention further comprises a shutter having a ring-shaped outer frame that can be inserted into the opening side of the bag and shutter pieces that close the opening area of the opening formed by the outer frame to a predetermined area or less, and a bag squeezing mechanism having a shutter drive unit that moves the shutter relative to the bag while it is closed, forming a squeezing portion of a predetermined length or more at a predetermined position on the opening side of the bag, and is characterized in that the winding gripping unit winds the squeezing portion around the winding shaft member.

[0011] The method for sealing a bag according to the present invention is characterized by comprising a winding step in which a gripping portion grips a portion of the bag on the opening side and wraps it around a winding shaft member to form a ring-shaped portion on the opening side of the bag; a knot-forming step in which a knotting gripping portion grips a portion of the bag on the opening side of the ring-shaped portion and moves the bag from the ring-shaped portion until all or part of the opening side of the bag passes through the ring-shaped portion; and a tightening step in which, simultaneously with or after the knot-forming step, a portion of the bag is pulled by the knotting gripping portion or the gripping portion to tighten the ring-shaped portion.

[0012] In addition, the method for sealing the mouth of a bag of the present invention is characterized in that, in the knot forming process, a portion of the bag closer to the tip than the annular portion is passed through the annular portion, while the tip of the bag on the opening side is not passed through the annular portion, and a slip knot is formed on the bag.

[0013] Furthermore, the bag sealing method of the present invention includes, prior to the winding step, a bag squeezing step in which a narrowed portion of a predetermined length or more is formed at a predetermined position on the opening side of the bag using a shutter having a ring-shaped outer frame that can be inserted into the opening side of the bag and shutter pieces that close the opening area of the opening formed by the outer frame to a predetermined area or less, and in the winding step, the narrowed portion formed in the bag squeezing step is wound around the winding shaft member. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a bag sealing machine and a bag sealing method that can automatically seal ordinary bags without the risk of foreign matter being mixed into the factory line when the bags are opened. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a bag sealing machine according to an embodiment. FIG. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram showing the system configuration of a bag sealing machine according to an embodiment. FIG. [Figure 3]1 is a flowchart for explaining a bag sealing method according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart for explaining a bag drawing process according to an embodiment. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the positional relationship of each component in a bag drawing process according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the positional relationship of each component in a bag drawing process according to an embodiment. [Figure 7] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the positional relationship of each component in a bag drawing process according to an embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart for explaining a bag wrapping process according to the embodiment. [Figure 9] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the positional relationship of each member in a bag wrapping process according to an embodiment. [Figure 10] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the positional relationship of each member in a bag wrapping process according to an embodiment. [Figure 11] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the positional relationship of each member in a bag wrapping process according to an embodiment. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a knot forming process according to an embodiment. [Figure 13] 10 is a flowchart for explaining a tightening process according to the embodiment. [Figure 14] 10A to 10C are diagrams showing the positional relationship of each member in a knot tying process and a tightening process according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] A bag sealing machine according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the schematic configuration of the bag sealing machine according to this embodiment. The bag sealing machine (hereinafter simply referred to as the bag sealing machine) 2 according to this embodiment is an apparatus for sealing the top of a bag filled with a filling material by a slip-knot. As shown in FIG. 1, it includes a container 3, a shutter 4, a lower-point gripping hand 5, a collaborative robot 6, a pipe member 7, a delivery gripping hand 8, and a knotting hand 9. The filling material may be, for example, a pre-measured seasoning used in preparations for supermarkets or convenience stores. In the following, an XYZ Cartesian coordinate system is set as shown in FIG. 1, and the positional relationships of the various components will be described with reference to this Cartesian coordinate system. The X axis is set horizontally and along the axial direction of the pipe member 7, the Y axis is set horizontally and perpendicular to the X axis, and the Z axis is set vertically.

[0017] A bag P to be sealed by the sealing machine 2 is placed over a cylindrical container 3 with a bottom. A measured amount of a filling material S, such as a seasoning, is filled into the bag P. The shutter 4 has an upper aperture shutter 4a and a lower aperture shutter 4b. The upper aperture shutter 4a and the lower aperture shutter 4b each have an annular outer frame that can be inserted through the opening side of the bag P, and shutter pieces that close the opening area of the opening formed by the outer frame to a predetermined area or less, and are movable in the Z direction. The upper aperture shutter 4a and the lower aperture shutter 4b wait at the bottom of the container 3 (the position shown in Figure 1) before sealing the bag P.

[0018] The lower point gripping hand 5 is movable in the Y direction, and before sealing the bag P, it waits at a position (the position shown in Figure 1) away from the top of the container 3 in the -Y direction. When sealing the bag P, the lower point gripping hand 5 moves in the +Y direction from the position shown in Figure 1, and grips the bag P directly above the lower point position L where the lower squeeze shutter 4b is constricting.

[0019] Collaborative robot (wrapping and gripping unit) 6 has an arm unit 6a and a gripping unit 6b, and before sealing the bag P, it waits at a position (the position shown in FIG. 1) away from the container 3 in the +Z and +Y directions. The arm unit 6a is movable in three dimensions, and moves the gripping unit 6b attached to the tip of the arm unit 6a in three dimensions relative to the pipe member 7. When sealing the bag P, the gripping unit 6b grips the opening side of the bag P, specifically, directly below the upper point position T where the upper aperture shutter 4a is constricted.

[0020] The pipe member (winding shaft member) 7 is a hollow member for winding a constricted portion A (see FIG. 6) formed on the outer peripheral surface of the bag P between upper point position T and lower point position L, and is movable in the X direction. Before sealing the bag P, the pipe member 7 waits in a position (position shown in FIG. 1) away from the top of the container 3 in the -X direction. When sealing the bag P, the pipe member 7 moves in the +X direction from the position shown in FIG. 1, and the collaborative robot 6 winds the opening side of the bag P, i.e., the constricted portion A, around the pipe member 7.

[0021] The delivery gripping hand 8 is movable in the Y direction, and before sealing the bag P, it waits at a position (position shown in FIG. 1) away from the lower part of the pipe member 7 in the -Y direction. When sealing the bag P, the delivery gripping hand 8 moves in the +Y direction from the position shown in FIG. 1 and grips the part of the bag P directly above that being gripped by the collaborative robot 6.

[0022] The knotting hand (knot gripping portion) 9 is disposed inside the pipe member 7 and is movable in the X direction. Before sealing the bag P, the knotting hand 9 waits together with the pipe member 7 at a position (position shown in FIG. 1) away from the top of the container 3 in the -X direction. When sealing the bag P, the knotting hand 9 moves in the +X direction from the position shown in FIG. 1 with its tip protruding from the pipe member 7 (state shown in FIG. 1), and grips a portion of the bag P closer to the opening than the bag P wrapped around the pipe member 7.

[0023] Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the system configuration of the sealing machine 2 according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 2, the sealing machine 2 is equipped with a control unit 10 that performs overall control of each unit of the sealing machine 2. An upper diaphragm shutter lifting / lowering unit 11, an upper diaphragm shutter opening / closing unit 12, a lower diaphragm shutter lifting / lowering unit 13, a lower diaphragm shutter opening / closing unit 14, a lower point gripping hand driving unit 15, a lower point gripping hand opening / closing unit 16, an arm driving unit 17, a gripping unit opening / closing unit 18, a pipe member driving unit 19, a transferring gripping hand driving unit 20, a transferring gripping hand opening / closing unit 21, a tying hand driving unit 22, and a tying hand opening / closing unit 23 are connected to the control unit 10.

[0024] The upper diaphragm shutter lifting unit 11 lifts and lowers the upper diaphragm shutter 4a in the Z direction relative to the container 3. The upper diaphragm shutter opening / closing unit 12 opens and closes the opening in the outer frame of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a by driving the shutter leaves of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a. The lower diaphragm shutter lifting unit 13 lifts and lowers the lower diaphragm shutter 4b in the Z direction relative to the container 3. The lower diaphragm shutter opening / closing unit 14 opens and closes the opening in the outer frame of the lower diaphragm shutter 4b by driving the shutter leaves of the lower diaphragm shutter 4b.

[0025] The lower point gripping hand driving unit 15 moves the lower point gripping hand 5 between the top of the container 3 and a retracted position in the -Y direction from the top of the container 3. The lower point gripping hand opening / closing unit 16 opens and closes the lower point gripping hand 5 to grip the bag P directly above the lower point position L.

[0026] The arm driving unit 17 drives the arm 6a of the collaborative robot 6 to move the gripper 6b attached to the end of the arm 6a in three dimensions. The gripper opening / closing unit 18 opens and closes the gripper 6b to cause the collaborative robot 6 to grip the bag P directly below the upper point position T.

[0027] The pipe member driving unit 19 moves the pipe member 7 between the top of the container 3 and a retracted position where the pipe member 7 is retracted from the top of the container 3 in the −X direction.

[0028] The transfer gripping hand driving unit 20 moves the transfer gripping hand 8 between the lower part of the pipe member 7 and a retracted position in the -Y direction from the lower part of the pipe member 7. The transfer gripping hand opening / closing unit 21 opens and closes the transfer gripping hand 8 to allow the transfer gripping hand 8 to grip the part directly above the part of the bag P that is being held by the collaborative robot 6.

[0029] The knotting hand driving unit 22 moves the knotting hand 9 in the axial direction of the pipe member 7 between the top of the container 3 and a retracted position where the knotting hand 9 is retracted in the -X direction from the top of the container 3. The knotting hand opening / closing unit 23 opens and closes the knotting hand 9 to cause the tying hand 9 to grip the part of the bag P directly below that gripped by the collaborative robot 6.

[0030] Next, a description will be given of a sealing method for sealing the opening of a bag P filled with a filling material S with a slip knot using the sealing machine 2 according to this embodiment. Fig. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the processing executed by the control unit 10 for sealing the opening of a bag P filled with a filling material S with a slip knot.

[0031] After the bag P filled with the measured filling material S is set in the container 3, the control unit 10 uses the shutter 4 to form a narrowed portion A (see FIG. 6) of a predetermined length or more at a predetermined position on the opening side of the bag P (bag narrowing process: step S10). FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the process executed by the control unit 10 to form the narrowed portion A on the opening side of the bag P.

[0032] The control unit 10 drives the upper diaphragm shutter elevator 11 and the lower diaphragm shutter elevator 13, respectively, to raise the shutters 4 (upper diaphragm shutter 4a and lower diaphragm shutter 4b) waiting below the container 3 to the top of the container 3, as shown in FIG. 5 (step S20). Next, with the opening side of the bag P inserted through the opening formed by the outer frame of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a and the outer frame of the lower diaphragm shutter 4b, as shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 10 drives the lower diaphragm shutter open / close unit 14, thereby closing the opening area of the opening in the outer frame of the lower diaphragm shutter 4b with the shutter leaves of the lower diaphragm shutter 4b to a predetermined area or less, thereby narrowing the bottom point position L of the bag P (step S21). In addition to the process of step S21, the control unit 10 also drives the upper diaphragm shutter open / close unit 12, and reduces the opening area of the opening in the outer frame of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a with the shutter leaves of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a to an extent that the upper diaphragm shutter 4a can raise the top point position T of the bag P.

[0033] Next, the control unit 10 drives the upper diaphragm shutter lifting unit 11 to move the upper diaphragm shutter 4a relative to the bag P. That is, the control unit 10 lifts the upper diaphragm shutter 4a above the container 3, specifically to a position where the bag P between the upper diaphragm shutter 4a and the lower diaphragm shutter 4b can stretch without bending (step S22). Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 10 drives the upper diaphragm shutter opening / closing unit 12 to close the opening area of the outer frame of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a with the shutter pieces of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a to a predetermined area or less, thereby constricting the upper point position T of the bag P (step S23). As a result, a constricted portion A of a predetermined length or more is formed at a predetermined position on the opening side of the bag P; specifically, a constricted portion A of a length from the position where the upper diaphragm shutter 4a is constricted (upper point position T) to the position where the lower diaphragm shutter 4b is constricted (lower point position L) of the bag P (see FIG. 6).

[0034] Next, the control unit 10 drives the arm unit drive unit 17 to move the arm unit 6a of the collaborative robot 6, thereby moving the gripper 6b, which is waiting on the +Y side of the container 3, to a position below the upper diaphragm shutter 4a where the gripper 6b can grip the bag P at a point directly below the upper point position T (step S24). Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 10 drives the gripper opening / closing unit 18 to cause the gripper 6b to grip the bag P at a point directly below the upper point position T (step S25). After completing the processing of step S25, the control unit 10 drives the upper diaphragm shutter opening / closing unit 12 to open the shutter leaves of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a, thereby increasing the opening area of the opening in the outer frame of the upper diaphragm shutter 4a (releasing the grip on the bag P at the upper point position T). Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 10 drives the upper diaphragm shutter lifting unit 11 to move the upper diaphragm shutter 4a above the container 3, thereby retracting the upper diaphragm shutter 4a (step S26).

[0035] Meanwhile, simultaneously with the processing of steps S24 to S26, the control unit 10 drives the lower point gripping hand driving unit 15 to move the lower point gripping hand 5, which is waiting on the -Y direction side of the container 3, to a position above the lower aperture shutter 4b where the lower point gripping hand 5 can grip the bag P at a point directly above the lower point position L (step S27). Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 10 drives the lower point gripping hand opening / closing unit 16 to cause the lower point gripping hand 5 to grip the bag P at a point directly above the lower point position L (step S28). After completing the processing of step S28, the control unit 10 drives the lower aperture shutter opening / closing unit 14 to open the shutter pieces of the lower aperture shutter 4b, thereby increasing the opening area of the opening in the outer frame of the lower aperture shutter 4b (releasing the grip of the bag P at the lower point position L). Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 10 drives the lower aperture shutter lifting unit 13 to move the lower aperture shutter 4b to the bottom of the container 3, thereby retracting the shutter (step S29).

[0036] Returning to the flowchart shown in Fig. 3, the control unit 10 wraps the opening side portion of the bag P gripped by the gripper 6b of the collaborative robot 6 around the pipe member 7 to form a ring-shaped portion R (see Fig. 11) on the opening side of the bag P (bag wrapping process: step S11). Fig. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the processing executed by the control unit 10 to form a ring-shaped portion R on the opening side of the bag P.

[0037] The control unit 10 drives the arm unit driver 17 to move the arm unit 6a of the collaborative robot 6, thereby moving the gripper 6b that grips the bag P directly below the upper position T above the container 3 in the +Y direction (step S30). Next, as shown in Fig. 9, the control unit 10 drives the pipe member driver 19 and the tying hand driver 22 to move the pipe member 7 and the tying hand 9, which are waiting on the -X direction side of the container 3, to above the container 3, and further to move the tying hand 9 to a position where it protrudes from the pipe member 7 (step S31).

[0038] Next, as shown in Fig. 9, the control unit 10 drives the arm unit driver 17 to move the arm unit 6a of the collaborative robot 6, thereby moving the gripper 6b to the lower left part of the pipe member 7 along the outer peripheral surface of the pipe member 7 and wrapping the narrowed portion A of the bag P around the pipe member 7 (step S32). Next, as shown in Fig. 10, the control unit 10 drives the delivery gripper hand driver 20 to move the delivery gripper hand 8 to the lower left part of the pipe member 7, i.e., to below the gripper 6b of the collaborative robot 6. Then, the control unit 10 drives the delivery gripper hand opener / closer 21 to cause the delivery gripper hand 8 to grip the upper point position T of the bag P (step S33).

[0039] After completing the processing of step S33, the control unit 10 drives the gripper opening / closing unit 18 to open the gripper 6b of the collaborative robot 6 and release the gripper 6b from gripping the bag P. Then, the control unit 10 drives the arm unit driving unit 17 to move the arm 6a of the collaborative robot 6, which was on the -Y direction side of the pipe member 7, to the +Y direction side of the pipe member 7 (step S34).

[0040] The control unit 10 drives the arm unit drive unit 17 to move the gripper 6b from the -Z direction side of the pipe member 7 to a position where the gripper 6b can grip the bag P at a point directly below the upper point position T, and then drives the gripper opening / closing unit 18 to cause the gripper 6b of the collaborative robot 6 to grip the bag P again at a point directly below the upper point position T, as shown in FIG. 10 (step S35). After completing the processing of step S35, the control unit 10 drives the delivery gripper hand open / close unit 21 to open the delivery gripper hand 8 and release the delivery gripper hand 8 from its grip on the bag P. Then, the control unit 10 drives the delivery gripper hand drive unit 20 to move the delivery gripper hand 8 in the -Y direction to retract it (step S36). 11, the control unit 10 drives the arm drive unit 17 to move the arm unit 6a of the collaborative robot 6, thereby moving the gripper 6b gripping the bag P directly below the upper point position T from the lower left of the pipe member 7 to the top of the container 3 in a counterclockwise direction as viewed from the +X direction, with the X-axis direction as an axis, along the outer peripheral surface of the pipe member 7 (step S37). As a result, the opening side of the bag P, specifically the constricted portion A of the bag P (see FIG. 6), is wrapped around the pipe member 7, and a ring-shaped portion R (see FIG. 11) is formed on the opening side of the bag P.

[0041] Returning to the flowchart shown in Fig. 3, the control unit 10 forms a knot by gripping a portion of the bag P on the opening side of the bag P from the annular portion R with the tying hand 8 and passing a portion of the bag P on the opening side of the bag P from the annular portion R through the annular portion R of the bag P (knot forming step: step S12). Fig. 12 is a flowchart for explaining the processing executed by the control unit 10 to form a knot on the opening side of the bag P.

[0042] 11, the control unit 10 drives the tying hand opening / closing unit 23 to cause the tying hand 9 to grip the lower part of the bag P gripped by the gripper 6b of the collaborative robot 6 (directly below the upper point position T) (step S40). After completing the processing of step S40, the control unit 10 drives the gripper opening / closing unit 18 to open the gripper 6b of the collaborative robot 6 and release the gripper 6b from its grip on the bag P. Then, the control unit 10 drives the arm unit driving unit 17 to retract the collaborative robot 6 to the position shown in FIG. 1 (step S41).

[0043] Next, the control unit 10 drives the knotting hand driving unit 22 to slide the knotting hand 9 in the −X direction (the axial direction of the pipe member 7) within the pipe member 7 until the portion of the bag P held by the knotting hand 9 passes through the annular portion R (step S42). As a result, the knotting hand 9 moves into the hollow portion of the pipe member 7, and a portion of the bag P held by the tying band 9 on the opening side, including the upper point position T, passes through the annular portion R of the bag P that is formed along the outer periphery of the pipe member 7, and a knot K (see FIG. 14) is formed in the bag P. Note that a portion of the bag P on the tip side of the annular portion R passes through the annular portion R, but the tip of the bag P on the opening side does not pass through the annular portion R.

[0044] After forming the knot K, the process returns to the flowchart shown in Fig. 3, and the control unit 10 pulls a portion of the bag P with the tying hand 9 to tighten the loop portion R (knot K) of the bag P (tightening process: step S13). Fig. 13 is a flowchart for explaining the process executed by the control unit 10 to tighten the loop portion R (knot K) of the bag P.

[0045] The control unit 10 drives the pipe member driving unit 19 to move the pipe member 7 in the -X direction and retract it (step S50). Next, as shown in Fig. 14, the control unit 10 drives the knotting hand driving unit 22 to move the knotting hand 9 in the -X direction and tighten the knot K (step S51). This forms a slip knot in the bag P.

[0046] The control unit 10 drives the knotting hand opening / closing unit 23 to open the knotting hand 9 and release the knotting hand 9 from its grip on the bag P, and drives the knotting hand driving unit 22 to move the knotting hand 9 in the -X direction to retract (step S52). After the processing of step S51, but simultaneously with or before or after the processing of step S52, the control unit 10 drives the lower point gripping hand opening / closing unit 16 to open the lower point gripping hand 5 and release the lower point gripping hand 5 from its grip on the bag P, and drives the lower point gripping hand driving unit 15 to move the lower point gripping hand 5 in the -Y direction to retract (step S53).

[0047] The bag sealing machine and bag sealing method according to this embodiment use ordinary bags P rather than specialized bags, and because the bags P themselves are tied, the bags P can be automatically sealed without the risk of foreign matter being introduced into the factory line when the bags P are opened. Furthermore, by forming a necked portion A of a predetermined length or more in the bag P using the bag squeezing mechanism, it becomes easier for each hand to grasp the necked portion A of the bag P, ensuring reliable sealing. Furthermore, because the bag sealing machine and bag sealing method according to this embodiment form a slip knot in the bag P, when the contents S of the bag P are to be used, the bag P can be easily opened by simply pulling on the leading edge.

[0048] Although the above-described embodiment includes one collaborative robot 6, multiple collaborative robots may be provided. In this case, temporary gripping of the upper point position T by the transfer gripping hand 8 for movement of the collaborative robot 6 is not required, and the processing of step S32 and the processing of step S37 shown in Fig. 8 can be performed by different collaborative robots, thereby reducing the time required for sealing.

[0049] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, a portion of the bag P distal to the annular portion R is passed through the annular portion R to form a slip knot, but the entire portion of the bag P distal to the annular portion R may be passed through the annular portion R to form a secure knot.

[0050] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the fastening step (step S13 in FIG. 3) is performed after the knot tying step (step S12 in FIG. 3), but the knot tying step and the fastening step may be performed simultaneously.

[0051] Furthermore, although the above-described embodiment is provided with two shutters, the upper diaphragm shutter 4a and the lower diaphragm shutter 4b, a configuration with only one shutter may be used. In this case, instead of the processing of steps S21 to S29 shown in Fig. 4, the shutter closes the lower point position L, the lower point gripping hand grips the point directly below the lower point position L, the shutter then rises and closes the upper point position T, the collaborative robot 6 grips the point directly below the upper point position T, and the shutter retracts. [Explanation of symbols]

[0052] 2...bag sealing machine, 3...container, 4...shutter, 4a...upper aperture shutter, 4b...lower aperture shutter, 5...lower point gripping hand, 6...collaborative robot, 6a...arm section, 6b...gripping section, 7...pipe member, 8...delivery gripping hand, 9...tying hand, 10...control section, 11...upper aperture shutter lifting section, 12...upper aperture shutter opening / closing section, 13...lower aperture shutter lifting section, 14...lower aperture shutter opening / closing section, 15...lower point gripping hand drive section, 16...lower point gripping hand open / close section, 17...arm section drive section, 18...gripping section open / close section, 19...pipe member drive section, 20...delivery gripping hand drive section, 21...delivery gripping hand open / close section, 22...tying hand drive section, 23...tying hand open / close section.

Claims

1. a hollow winding shaft member for winding a bag around the outer peripheral surface; one or more wrapping grippers that grip an opening side of the bag and wrap the opening side of the bag around the wrapping shaft member to form a loop portion on the opening side of the bag; a knot gripping portion disposed within the winding shaft member and configured to grip a portion of the bag at a tip end thereof closer to the opening than the annular portion; a knot gripper drive unit that slides the knot gripper in the axial direction of the winding shaft member within the winding shaft member until the opening side portion of the bag gripped by the knot gripper passes through the annular portion; A bag sealing machine comprising:

2. a shutter having an annular outer frame through which the opening side of the bag can be inserted and shutter pieces that close the opening area of the opening formed by the outer frame to a predetermined area or less; a bag squeezing mechanism having a shutter drive unit that moves the shutter relative to the bag while the shutter is closed to form a squeezing portion of a predetermined length or more at a predetermined position on the opening side of the bag; Further provided with 2. The bag sealing machine according to claim 1, wherein the winding gripper winds the drawing portion around the winding shaft member.

3. a winding step of gripping a portion of the bag on the opening side with a gripping portion and winding the bag around a winding shaft member to form a loop portion on the opening side of the bag; a knot forming step of gripping a portion of the bag on the opening side of the annular portion with a knot gripper and moving the bag until all or a part of the bag on the opening side of the annular portion passes through the annular portion; a fastening step of pulling a part of the bag with the knot gripping portion or the gripping portion to fasten the loop portion simultaneously with or after the knot tying step; A method for sealing a bag, comprising:

4. A method for sealing a bag according to claim 3, characterized in that in the knot forming step, a portion of the bag on the tip side from the annular portion is passed through the annular portion, while the tip of the bag on the opening side is not passed through the annular portion, and a slip knot is formed in the bag.

5. Before the winding step, a bag drawing process for forming a drawn portion of a predetermined length or more at a predetermined position on the opening side of the bag using a shutter having an annular outer frame through which the opening side of the bag can be inserted and shutter pieces that close the opening area of the opening formed by the outer frame to a predetermined area or less; 5. The bag sealing method according to claim 3, wherein in the winding step, the drawn portion formed in the bag drawing step is wound around the winding shaft member.

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