Robot hand, reversing gear, and reversing method

Abstract

To provide a robot hand that can automatically hold and reverse a bread.SOLUTION: A robot hand for reversing rear and front sides of a bread comprises: two holding parts which are rod-like bodies with a U-shaped cross section formed of a rectangular-shape base part and a first side part and a second side part in rectangular shapes erected respectively at both end parts in a width direction of the base part, which are arranged to make inner wall surfaces of the base part oppose to each other so as to hold the bread; an interval adjusting part that adjusts an interval between the two holding parts; and a reversing part that reverses the two holding parts with a direction parallel to a longitudinal direction of the holding parts between the two holding parts as a shaft. A width of an opening part formed of an edge portion of the first side part and an edge portion of the second side part is larger than a thickness of the bread.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a robot hand for turning bread upside down, a turning device equipped with the robot hand, and a turning method using the turning device. [Background technology]

[0002] When making a sandwich, seasoning containing fats and oils such as margarine, butter, mayonnaise, etc. is sometimes applied to the surface of the bread that comes into contact with the filling to be sandwiched between the slices of bread in order to prevent moisture seeping out from the filling from seeping into the bread. Therefore, the process of making a sandwich requires the steps of applying the fat-and-oil-containing seasoning to two slices of bread, placing the filling on one slice of bread, turning the other slice of bread over so that the surface coated with the fat-and-oil-containing seasoning comes into contact with the filling, and placing the other slice of bread on top of the one slice of bread with the filling on it.

[0003] Among these processes, there is a demand for automation of the process of lifting and turning bread over, which is currently performed manually. Robot hands for gripping soft and easily deformed foods such as bread are disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 4, etc. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-077147 [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2021-154440 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-020419 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 07-060676 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, as described above, bread is not only soft and easily deformed, but also thin and has a large surface area relative to its thickness, making it difficult to grasp with the robot hands described in Patent Documents 1 to 4. Furthermore, it is even more difficult to turn bread over with a robot hand.

[0006] Furthermore, for example, when a surface coated with seasoning is gripped by a robot hand, the seasoning may adhere to the robot hand, and the adhered material may then adhere to a surface that is not coated with seasoning.

[0007] An object of the present invention is to provide a robot hand that can automatically grasp and invert bread, an inverting device equipped with the robot hand, and an inverting method using the inverting device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The robot hand of the present invention is a robot hand for flipping bread upside down, and is a rod-shaped body with a U-shaped cross section formed by a rectangular base and rectangular first and second side portions erected at both ends of the width of the base, and is equipped with two gripping portions arranged with the inner wall surfaces of the base facing each other, which grip the bread, a spacing adjustment portion which adjusts the spacing between the two gripping portions, and a flipping portion which flips the two gripping portions around an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping portions between the two gripping portions, and is characterized in that the width of the opening formed by the edge of the first side portion and the edge of the second side portion is greater than the thickness of the bread.

[0009] The spacing adjustment unit of the robot hand of the present invention is characterized in that when the two gripping units grip the bread, the spacing between the inner wall surfaces of the base of each of the two gripping units is adjusted to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the bread gripped by the two gripping units.

[0010] The robot hand of the present invention is also characterized in that at least one of the first side portion and the second side portion of each of the two gripping portions has an inner edge chamfered at least partially.

[0011] In addition, the inversion device of the present invention is an inversion device for inverting bread upside down, and comprises a conveyor for transporting the bread, a sensor for detecting the bread placed on the conveyor, and a robot hand for inverting the bread placed on the conveyor, wherein the robot hand is a rod-shaped body with a U-shaped cross section formed by a rectangular base and rectangular first and second side portions erected at both ends of the width of the base, and is arranged with the inner wall surfaces of the base facing each other, and has two gripping portions for gripping the bread, a spacing adjustment portion for adjusting the spacing between the two gripping portions, and an inversion portion for inverting the two gripping portions around an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping portions between the two gripping portions, and wherein the width of the opening formed by the edge of the first side portion and the edge of the second side portion is greater than the thickness of the bread.

[0012] The spacing adjustment unit of the inversion device of the present invention is characterized in that when the two gripping parts grip the bread, the spacing between the inner wall surfaces of the bases of the two gripping parts is adjusted to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the bread gripped by the two gripping parts.

[0013] The reversing device of the present invention is characterized in that at least one of the first side portion and the second side portion of each of the two gripping portions has an inner edge portion that is chamfered at least partially.

[0014] The inverting device of the present invention is also characterized by further comprising an application mechanism for applying oil-containing seasoning to one side of the bread.

[0015] The inversion method of the present invention is a method for inverting bread upside down using an inversion device for inverting bread, the method comprising: a conveying step of conveying the placed bread; a detection step of detecting the bread conveyed in the conveying step by a sensor; and when the bread is detected in the detection step, a sensor is provided to turn the bread upside down by turning the bread upside down. The sensor is provided with two gripping parts, each of which is a rod-shaped body with a U-shaped cross section formed by a rectangular base and rectangular first and second side parts erected at both ends of the base in the width direction, and which are arranged with the inner wall surfaces of the base facing each other, and which grip the bread. The method includes a moving step of moving the bread to a position where it will be clamped; a gripping step of gripping the bread with the two gripping parts by receiving the bread through an opening having a width greater than the thickness of the bread and formed by the edge of the first side and the edge of the second side by adjusting the spacing between the two gripping parts with a spacing adjustment part; and an inversion step of lifting the two gripping parts gripping the bread and inverting the two gripping parts with an inversion part around an axis in a direction parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping parts between the two gripping parts.

[0016] Furthermore, the gripping step of the inversion method of the present invention is characterized in that the distance between the inner wall surfaces of the base of each of the two gripping portions is adjusted to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the bread gripped by the two gripping portions.

[0017] The inverting method of the present invention is characterized by further comprising a coating step of coating one side of the bread with an oil-containing seasoning by a coating mechanism. [Effects of the Invention]

[0018] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a robot hand that can automatically grasp and invert bread, an inverting device equipped with the robot hand, and an inverting method using the inverting device. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a reversing device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2]1A is a front view showing a state in which a gripping portion according to a first embodiment grips a loaf of bread, and FIG. 1B is an enlarged view of the gripping portion. [Figure 3] 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a reversing device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart illustrating an inversion method according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a gripping portion according to a first embodiment grips a loaf of bread. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the grip part according to the first embodiment is inverted. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is an enlarged front view showing the configuration of a grip portion according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] A first embodiment of a turnover device and a turnover method according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the schematic configuration of a turnover device according to the first embodiment. The turnover device 2 according to the first embodiment is a device for turning over bread for sandwiches, and as shown in FIG. 1, includes a conveyor 4, a sensor 6, and a robot hand 8. An XYZ Cartesian coordinate system shown in FIG. 1 is set, and the positional relationships of the various components will be described below with reference to this Cartesian coordinate system. The X axis is set horizontally and in the direction of travel of the conveyor 4, the Y axis is set horizontally and perpendicular to the X axis, and the Z axis is set vertically.

[0021] Conveyor 4 transports in the +X direction a plurality of sandwich loaves (hereinafter simply referred to as loaves) 10a, 10b, which have been sliced ​​to a predetermined thickness by a slicing mechanism (not shown) and have had the crusts removed as necessary. Loaves 10a are placed on the -Y side of conveyor 4. One side of loaf 10a (the inner side that comes into contact with the sandwich fillings) is coated with oil-containing seasonings such as margarine, butter, and mayonnaise (including mayonnaise with mustard) by a coating mechanism (not shown). Loaf 10b is placed on the +Y side of conveyor 4. One side of loaf 10b is coated with oil-containing seasonings and then topped with sandwich fillings such as eggs and tuna. The sensor 6 detects the loaf of bread 10a placed on the conveyor 4 at a predetermined position (position in the Y direction) and a predetermined interval (interval in the X direction) before the loaf of bread 10a is transported by the conveyor 4 and reaches below the robot hand 8.

[0022] The robot hand 8 grasps both X-direction sides of the loaf of bread 10a placed on the conveyor 4, turns the grasped loaf of bread 10a over while moving it above the loaf of bread 10b, and places the turned-over loaf of bread 10a on top of the loaf of bread 10b. Examples of the robot hand 8 include a single-axis actuator, an air cylinder, a collaborative robot, and an industrial robot. The robot hand 8 according to this embodiment is positioned in a direction (Y direction) perpendicular to the direction of travel (X direction) of the conveyor 4 within the XY plane (horizontal plane), but may also be configured to be positioned above the conveyor 4. As shown in FIG. 1 , the robot hand 8 has an arm 11 and two hands 8a and 8b. The arm 11 is movable in ±Z, ±X, and ±Y directions, and moves the hands 8a and 8b attached to the tip of the arm 11 in ±Z, ±X, and ±Y directions relative to the conveyor 4. The hand 8a is positioned on the -X direction side, and the hand 8b is positioned on the +X direction side.

[0023] The hand unit 8a has two gripping portions 12a and 12b for gripping a loaf of bread 10a. The gripping portion 12a is a rod-shaped body with a U-shaped cross section, which is formed by an elongated rectangular base 13a, an elongated rectangular first side portion 14a extending in the +X direction from one widthwise end (the end on the +Z direction side) of the base 13a, and an elongated rectangular second side portion 15a extending in the +X direction from the other widthwise end (the end on the -Z direction side) of the base 13a. The gripping portion 12b is a rod-shaped body with a U-shaped cross section, which is formed by an elongated rectangular base 13b, an elongated rectangular first side portion 14b extending in the -X direction from one widthwise end (the end on the -Z direction side) of the base 13b, and an elongated rectangular second side portion 15b extending in the -X direction from the other widthwise end (the end on the -Z direction side) of the base 13b. The gripping portions 12a and 12b are arranged with their longitudinal directions facing the Y direction, with the inner wall surfaces of their bases 13a and 13b facing each other, with gripping portion 12a on the +X direction side and gripping portion 12b on the -X direction side. By adjusting the distance between gripping portions 12a and 12b, gripping portions 12a and 12b clamp and grip loaf of bread 10a conveyed by conveyor 4 from both sides in the X direction.

[0024] FIG. 2(A) is a front view showing the gripping portions 12a and 12b gripping a loaf of bread 10a, and FIG. 2(B) is an enlarged view of the gripping portions 12a and 12b. As shown in FIG. 2(B), the inside edges of the second side portion 15a of the gripping portion 12a and the inside edges of the second side portion 15b of the gripping portion 12b are chamfered. The width of the second side portions 15a and 15b is set to approximately 10 mm, which is suitable for sandwich bread 10a, in order to prevent seasoning from adhering and to prevent the loaf of bread 10a from slipping out. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, the width W1 of the opening formed by the edge of the first side portion 14a and the edge of the second side portion 15a, and the width W2 of the opening formed by the edge of the first side portion 14b and the edge of the second side portion 15b are greater than the thickness W of the loaf of bread 10a, and are preferably no more than 1.5 times the thickness W of the loaf of bread 10a. This is because if the widths W1 and W2 of the openings are greater than 1.5 times the thickness W of the loaf of bread 10a, there is a high possibility that the loaf of bread 10a will come loose when being turned over.

[0025] The hand portion 8b has a gripping portion 22a, which is a rod-shaped body formed by a base portion 23a, a first side portion 24a, and a second side portion 25a, and a gripping portion 22b, which is a rod-shaped body formed by a base portion 23b, a first side portion 24b, and a second side portion 25b.Since the configuration of these is the same as the configuration of the hand portion 8a, explanation will be omitted.

[0026] Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the system configuration of the reversing device 2. As shown in Fig. 3, the reversing device 2 is equipped with a control unit 30 that comprehensively controls each unit of the reversing device 2. A conveyor driving unit 31, a sensor 6, an arm driving unit 32, a first gap adjusting unit 33, a second gap adjusting unit 34, a first gripping unit reversing unit 35, and a second gripping unit reversing unit 36 ​​are connected to the control unit 30.

[0027] The conveyor driver 31 drives the conveyor 4 to move the loaves of bread 10a, 10b on the conveyor 4. The arm driver 32 drives the arm 11 of the robot hand 8 to move the hands 8a, 8b attached to the end of the arm 11 in the ±Z and ±Y directions. When the sensor 6 detects the loaf of bread 10a placed and transported on the conveyor 4 at a predetermined position (position in the Y direction) and a predetermined interval (interval in the X direction), it outputs a detection signal to the control unit 30. When the control unit 30 receives the detection signal from the sensor 6, it calculates the timing at which the loaf of bread 10a detected by the sensor 6 will reach below the grippers 12a, 12b or below the grippers 22a, 22b.

[0028] The first distance adjustment unit 33 adjusts the distance between the two grippers 12a and 12b by moving the grippers 12a and 12b of the hand unit 8a in the X direction. When the two grippers 12a and 12b grip the loaf of bread 10a, the first distance adjustment unit 33 adjusts the distance D (see FIG. 2) between the inner wall surface of the base 13a of the gripper 12a and the inner wall surface of the base 13b of the gripper 12b to a width that prevents the loaf of bread 10a from falling between the two grippers 12a and 12b when the loaf of bread 10a is moved or turned over, i.e., to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the loaf of bread 10a gripped by the two grippers 12a and 12b. However, if seasoning adhesion is not a concern and there are no problems with installation, the width may be wider as long as the loaf of bread 10a does not fall between the two grippers 12a and 12b when the loaf of bread 10a is moved or turned over.

[0029] The second gap adjustment unit 34 adjusts the gap between the two gripping units 22a, 22b by moving the gripping units 22a, 22b of the hand unit 8b in the X direction. When the two gripping units 22a, 22b grip a loaf of bread 10a, the second gap adjustment unit 34 adjusts the gap between the inner wall surface of the base 23a of the gripping unit 22a and the inner wall surface of the base 23b of the gripping unit 22b to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the loaf of bread 10a gripped by the two gripping units 22a, 22b.

[0030] The first gripping unit inversion unit 35 inverts the two gripping units 12a and 12b about an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping units 12a and 12b between the two gripping units 12a and 12b. The second gripping unit inversion unit 36 ​​inverts the two gripping units 22a and 22b about an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping units 22a and 22b between the two gripping units 22a and 22b.

[0031] Next, a method for turning over the loaf of bread 10a using the turning device 2 according to the first embodiment will be described. Fig. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the process executed by the control unit 30 to turn over the loaf of bread 10a. The robot hand 8 waits at a standby position above the conveyor 4 with the distance between the gripping portions 12a and 12b of the hand unit 8a and the distance between the gripping portions 22a and 22b of the hand unit 8b set wider than the width of the loaf of bread 10a (see Fig. 2).

[0032] When a loaf of bread 10a sliced ​​to a predetermined thickness and coated with oil-containing seasoning, and a loaf of bread 10b sliced ​​to a predetermined thickness and coated with oil-containing seasoning and topped with sandwich fillings are placed on the conveyor 4, the control unit 30 drives the conveyor drive unit 31 to transport the loaf of bread 10a, 10b in the +X direction (step S10).

[0033] Next, when the control unit 30 receives a detection signal from the sensor 6 that detects the conveyance of the loaf of bread 10a placed on the conveyor 4 (step S11), it calculates the timing at which the loaf of bread 10a detected by the sensor 6 will reach below the gap between the grippers 22a and 22b. When the loaf of bread 10a reaches below the gap between the grippers 22a and 22b, the control unit 10 drives the arm drive unit 33 to move the arm 11 of the robot hand 8, thereby moving the grippers 12a and 12b of the hand unit 8a and the grippers 22a and 22b of the hand unit 8b from the standby position in the -Z direction, i.e., to a position where the loaf of bread 10a will be sandwiched (step S12).

[0034] Next, the control unit 30 adjusts the distance between the gripping portions 12a and 12b, so that the loaf of bread 10a is received through the opening formed by the edge of the first side portion 14a and the edge of the second side portion 15a, and the opening formed by the edge of the first side portion 14b and the edge of the second side portion 15b, as shown in FIG. 5, thereby gripping the loaf of bread 10a with the two gripping portions 12a and 12b (step S13). That is, the control unit 30 drives the first distance adjustment unit 33 to move the gripping unit 12a in the +X direction and the gripping unit 12b in the -X direction, thereby adjusting the distance between the inner wall surface of the base 13a and the inner wall surface of the base 13b to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the loaf of bread 10a, and grips the loaf of bread 10a by placing both X-direction ends of the back surface of the loaf of bread 10a on the inner wall surfaces of the second side portions 15a, 15b and sandwiching both X-direction ends of the loaf of bread 10a between the inner wall surfaces of the bases 13a, 13b. Similarly, control unit 30 drives second distance adjustment unit 34 to move gripping unit 22a in the +X direction and gripping unit 22b in the -X direction, thereby adjusting the distance between the inner wall surface of base 23a and the inner wall surface of base 23b to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of loaf of bread 10a, placing both X-direction ends of the back surface of loaf of bread 10a on the inner wall surfaces of second side portions 25a, 25b, and gripping loaf of bread 10a by sandwiching both X-direction ends of loaf of bread 10a between the inner wall surfaces of bases 23a, 23b.

[0035] Next, as shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 30 drives the arm unit drive unit 32 to raise the arm unit 11, thereby raising the hand units 8a and 8b gripping the loaf of bread 10a, and then turns over the grippers 12a and 12b gripping the loaf of bread 10a and the grippers 22a and 22b gripping the loaf of bread 10a, thereby turning over the loaf of bread 10a (step S14). Specifically, the control unit 30 drives the first gripper turnover unit 35 to rotate the grippers 12a and 12b gripping the loaf of bread 10a by 180 degrees around the axis extending in the Y direction between the two grippers 12a and 12b. Similarly, the control unit 30 drives the second gripper turnover unit 36 ​​to rotate the grippers 22a and 22b gripping the loaf of bread 10a by 180 degrees around the axis extending in the Y direction between the two grippers 22a and 22b.

[0036] Simultaneously with or after the processing of step S14, the control unit 30 drives the arm unit drive unit 32 to move the arm unit 11, thereby moving the hand units 8a and 8b gripping the loaf of bread 10a to directly above the loaf of bread 10b and lowering them to near the loaf of bread 10b (step S15). Then, the control unit 30 drives the first gap adjustment unit 33 to move the gripping unit 12a in the −X direction and the gripping unit 12b in the +X direction, thereby widening the gap between the gripping units 12a and 12b and releasing the gripping of the loaf of bread 10a. Similarly, the control unit 30 drives the second gap adjustment unit 34 to move the gripping unit 22a in the −X direction and the gripping unit 22b in the +X direction, thereby widening the gap between the gripping units 22a and 22b and releasing the gripping of the loaf of bread 10a. The slice of bread 10a is placed on top of the slice of bread 10b directly below it, completing the sandwich.

[0037] The control unit 30 drives the arm unit driver 32 to move the arm unit 11, thereby retracting the robot hand 8 to the standby position, and drives the first gripper turner 35 to turn over the grippers 12a and 12b, and drives the second gripper turner 36 to turn over the grippers 22a and 22b (step S16). Note that the movement of the robot hand 8 involved in retraction in step S16 may be controlled to be faster than the movement of the robot hand 8 in steps S14 and S15, because the robot hand 8 is not gripping the loaf of bread 10a.

[0038] The robot hand 8, the inverting device 2, and the inverting method according to the first embodiment can automatically grip and invert soft, easily deformable bread. In particular, even when seasoning is applied to one side of bread, such as sandwich bread, the seasoning can be prevented from adhering to the gripping portions 12a, 12b, 22a, and 22b. Even if seasoning is applied, the first side portions 14a, 14b, 24a, and 24b do not come into contact with any part of the bread other than the one side, preventing the seasoning from adhering to any part of the bread other than the one side. Furthermore, the inner edges of the second side portions 15a, 15b, 25a, and 25b are chamfered, making it easier to insert the second side portions 15a, 15b, 25a, and 25b between the top surface of the conveyor 4 and the underside of the bread 10a without damaging the bread 10a.

[0039] Next, an inversion device and an inversion method according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Regarding the inversion device according to the second embodiment, the same components as those of the inversion device 2 according to the first embodiment shown in Fig. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals, and illustrations and descriptions of those components will be omitted. The inversion device according to the second embodiment includes grippers 42a and 42b shown in Fig. 7, instead of grippers 12a and 12b according to the first embodiment.

[0040] 7 is an enlarged front view showing the configuration of gripping portions 42a and 42b according to the second embodiment. The gripping portion 42a has a base 43a and a second side 45a identical to the base 13a and the second side 15a shown in FIG. 2. The gripping portion 42a also has a first side 44a having an elongated rectangular shape and extending in the +X direction from one widthwise end (the end on the +Z direction side) of the base 43a. The inner edges of the first side 44a are chamfered. Similarly, the gripping portion 42b has a base 43b and a second side 45b identical to the base 13b and the second side 15b shown in FIG. 2. The gripping portion 42b also has a first side 44b having an elongated rectangular shape and extending in the -X direction from one widthwise end (the end on the +Z direction side) of the base 43b. The inner edges of the first side 44b are chamfered.

[0041] Furthermore, the inversion device of the second embodiment has two gripping parts (not shown) having the same configuration as gripping parts 42a and 42b shown in Figure 7, instead of gripping parts 22a and 22b of the first embodiment.

[0042] In the method for turning over loaf of bread 10a using the turning device according to the second embodiment, after performing the same processes as steps S10 to S15 in the flowchart shown in Fig. 4, the control unit 30 drives the arm unit drive unit 32 to move the arm unit 11, thereby retracting the robot hand 8 to the standby position, without turning over the grippers 42a, 42b and the two grippers (not shown). Then, after the next loaf of bread 10a is transported by the conveyor 4, the control unit 30 places both X-direction ends of the back surface of the loaf of bread 10a on the inner wall surfaces of the first side portions 44a, 44b, rather than the second side portions 45a, 45b, and grips the loaf of bread 10a by sandwiching both X-direction ends of the loaf of bread 10a between the inner wall surfaces of the base portions 43a, 43b.

[0043] The robot hand, the turnover device, and the turnover method according to the second embodiment can automatically grip and turn over soft, easily deformable bread. Furthermore, while the grippers 12a, 12b, 22a, and 22b according to the first embodiment turn over twice for each slice of bread 10a, the grippers 42a and 42b according to the second embodiment turn over once for each slice of bread 10a, thereby reducing the retraction time of the grippers 42a and 42b.

[0044] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the inside edges of the second side portion are chamfered, and in the second embodiment, the inside edges of the first and second side portions are chamfered, but it is sufficient if at least a portion of at least one of the first and second side portions, i.e., a portion on the +Y direction side that grips the loaf of bread 10a, is chamfered.

[0045] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the robot hand 8 includes two hand units 8a, 8b and grips two slices of bread 10a at a time, but a configuration including one hand unit or three or more hand units may also be used. Note that there is an upper limit to the flipping speed to prevent the loaf of bread 10a from losing grip due to centrifugal force when flipping the loaf of bread 10a. Even in this case, however, by providing multiple hand units, it is possible to achieve the target number of flipped slices of bread 10a per unit time. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an example was given in which the robot hand 8 grips and flips sandwich loaf of bread 10a. However, the present invention can also be applied to breads other than loaf of bread.

[0046] Furthermore, in the first and second embodiments described above, the loaf of bread 10a is transported while placed on a belt conveyor, but it may also be transported while placed on a container such as a food container or a flat plate such as a cutting board, and does not necessarily have to be placed on a belt conveyor.

[0047] Furthermore, in the above-described first and second embodiments, the inverting device 2 does not have an application mechanism, but the inverting device 2 may have an application mechanism that applies seasoning to one side of the loaf of bread 10a, 10b, and the control unit 30 may control the operation of the application mechanism. Similarly, the inverting methods according to the above-described first and second embodiments do not include an application step, but an application step may be added in which the control unit 30 causes the application mechanism to apply seasoning to one side of the loaf of bread 10a, 10b using an inverting device 2 that has an application mechanism, before the processing of step S10 shown in the flowchart of FIG. 4. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 2...inverting device, 4...conveyor, 6...sensor, 8...robot hand, 8a, 8b...hand section, 10a, 10b...loaf of bread, 11...arm section, 12a, 12b, 22a, 22b, 42a, 42b...gripping section, 13a, 13b, 23a, 23b, 43a, 43b...base section, 14a, 14b, 24a, 24b, 44a, 44b...first side section, 15a, 15b, 25a, 25b, 45a, 45b...second side section, 30...control section, 31...conveyor drive section, 32...arm section drive section, 33...first spacing adjustment section, 34...second spacing adjustment section, 35...first gripper inverting section, 36...second gripper inverting section.

Claims

1. A robot hand for turning bread over, a rod-shaped body having a U-shaped cross section formed by a rectangular base, a rectangular first side portion and a rectangular second side portion erected at both ends of the width direction of the base, the two gripping portions being arranged with inner wall surfaces of the base facing each other and gripping the bread; a gap adjusting unit for adjusting the gap between the two gripping units; and an inversion unit that inverts the two gripping units about an axis that is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping units between the two gripping units, A robot hand, characterized in that the width of an opening formed by the edge of the first side and the edge of the second side is greater than the thickness of the bread.

2. The robot hand according to claim 1, characterized in that, when the two gripping portions grip the bread, the spacing adjustment portion adjusts the spacing between the inner wall surfaces of the bases of the two gripping portions to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the bread gripped by the two gripping portions.

3. 3. The robot hand according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first side portion and the second side portion of each of the two gripping portions has an inner edge that is chamfered.

4. A flipping device for flipping bread, a conveyor for transporting the bread; a sensor for detecting the bread placed on the conveyor; a robot hand that turns over the bread placed on the conveyor; The robot hand a rod-shaped body having a U-shaped cross section formed by a rectangular base, a rectangular first side portion and a rectangular second side portion erected at both ends of the width direction of the base, the two gripping portions being arranged with inner wall surfaces of the base facing each other and gripping the bread; a gap adjusting unit for adjusting the gap between the two gripping units; a reversing portion that reverses the two gripping portions about an axis that is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping portions between the two gripping portions, An inverting device, characterized in that the width of an opening formed by the edge of the first side and the edge of the second side is greater than the thickness of the bread.

5. The inversion device described in claim 4, characterized in that when the two gripping portions grip the bread, the spacing adjustment portion adjusts the spacing between the inner wall surfaces of the bases of each of the two gripping portions to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the bread gripped by the two gripping portions.

6. 6. The reversing device according to claim 4, wherein at least a part of an inner edge of at least one of the first side portion and the second side portion of each of the two gripping portions is chamfered.

7. 6. The inverting device according to claim 4, further comprising an application mechanism for applying an oil-containing seasoning to one surface of the bread.

8. A method for turning bread upside down using a turning device for turning bread upside down, a conveying step of conveying the placed bread; a detecting step of detecting the bread conveyed in the conveying step by a sensor; a moving step of moving two gripping portions, which are rod-shaped bodies with a U-shaped cross section formed by a rectangular base and rectangular first and second side portions erected at both ends of the base in the width direction, and which are arranged with inner wall surfaces of the base facing each other and grip the bread, to positions where the two gripping portions grip the bread, when the bread is detected in the detecting step, to positions where the two gripping portions grip the bread; a gripping step of adjusting the distance between the two gripping parts using a distance adjusting part, thereby receiving the bread through an opening formed by the edge of the first side and the edge of the second side and having a width greater than the thickness of the bread, thereby gripping the bread with the two gripping parts; an inversion step of lifting the two gripping parts gripping the bread and inverting the two gripping parts by an inversion part about an axis in a direction parallel to the longitudinal direction of the gripping parts between the two gripping parts; 2. An inversion method comprising:

9. The inversion method according to claim 8, characterized in that the gripping process adjusts the distance between the inner wall surfaces of the bases of each of the two gripping portions to 0.95 to 1.05 times the width of the bread gripped by the two gripping portions.

10. 10. The method for turning over the bread according to claim 8 or claim 9, further comprising a coating step of coating one side of the bread with an oil-containing seasoning by a coating mechanism.

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