Combination weighing device

Abstract

To solve the problems that in order to make an outer wall of an upper-stage hopper higher than a discharge port of a radiation trough, a fence is provided on the outer wall of the hopper, however, when cleaning each hopper, the fence is first removed, and then each hopper is removed in order, which causes poor workability.SOLUTION: In the present invention, three hoppers of different shapes are prepared, and outer walls of the hoppers are raised to create a hopper that integrates a conventional fence with the hoppers. The left and right end parts of the outer wall of a first hopper are shaped to be positioned inside the outer walls of the hoppers on both sides, and of both end parts of the outer wall of a second hopper, the right end part is shaped to be positioned inside the outer wall of the hopper adjacent to the right side, and the left end part is shaped to be positioned outside the outer wall of the hopper adjacent to the left side. Further, the outer wall of a third hopper is shaped to be positioned outside the outer walls of the hoppers on both side. Consequently, it is possible to remove each hopper in order while making one full rotation around the outer periphery of each hopper.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a combination weighing device. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, when combining and weighing items that tend to tangle, such as bean sprouts, the radial troughs are formed flat and the opening of the pool hopper that receives the items is widened in an inverted tapered shape to correspond to the widened discharge outlet of the trough, in order to untangle the items fed into the device, as disclosed in Patent Document 1 below. Also, a fence that is higher than the horizontal level of the radial troughs is detachably attached to the back side of the hopper on the side opposite the discharge outlet of the radial trough, to prevent the items from falling out of the hopper.

[0003] Because this fence is detachable, when cleaning the device, it is necessary to first remove the fences of each hopper in order while going around the periphery of the device, and then remove each hopper in order while going around the periphery of the device again.As a result, there was a problem that the work of removing and attaching the hoppers took time, making the work less efficient. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-114375 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The present invention aims to eliminate such poor workability and to provide a new combination weighing device in which the pool hopper can be removed from the device and sent for cleaning simply by moving around the periphery of the device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A combination weighing device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: The plurality of radially arranged radiating troughs are arranged so as to surround the outer periphery thereof, and each of the corresponding radiating troughs is A combination weighing device equipped with a plurality of hoppers that respectively receive articles discharged from a radial trough And, The hoppers include a first hopper, a plurality of second hoppers, and a third hopper. The hopper includes a housing that temporarily stores and discharges the articles supplied from the radiation trough; an upper opening at the top of the housing for guiding articles supplied from the corresponding radiation trough into the housing; an outer wall having a height higher than the height of the discharge outlet of the radiation trough is provided on a side of the upper opening facing the discharge outlet of the radiation trough; Both ends of the first hopper in the left-right direction along the outer wall are located inside the outer walls of the hoppers located adjacent to each other, The right end of the outer wall of the second hopper is located inside the outer wall of the hopper located adjacent to it on the right, while the left end is located outside the outer wall of the hopper located adjacent to it on the left, The outer wall of the third hopper is located outside the outer walls of the hoppers located adjacent to it on both sides.

[0007] In this case, each hopper is equipped with an opening / closing gate located at the opening at the bottom of the housing, a link mechanism for opening and closing the opening / closing gate, and a hanger unit attached to the housing. Therefore, when removing the hopper from the device main body, first tilt the hopper toward the device to release the engagement between the swinging end of the link mechanism and the opening / closing lever on the device main body. In this state, if the hopper is pulled up, the hopper's hanger unit will detach from the support bar of the device main body, and the hopper can be removed from the device main body.

[0008] Therefore, when removing each hopper configured as described above from the device body, first tilt the first hopper, which can be tilted toward the device without being obstructed by the hoppers on either side, toward the device. This disengages the link mechanism of the first hopper from the opening / closing lever on the device body. In this state, when the first hopper is lifted, the hanger unit of the first hopper separates from the support bar on the device body, allowing the first hopper to be removed from the device body.

[0009] Next, since the outer wall of the second hopper to the right of the removed first hopper is located inside the outer wall of the second hopper to the right of that hopper, tilt the second hopper to the right of the first hopper toward the device. Then, as described above, the link mechanism of the tilted second hopper will disengage from the opening / closing lever, so if you lift the second hopper in this state, the hanger unit will separate from the support bar of the device body, allowing you to remove the second hopper.

[0010] Similarly, if you tilt the second hopper to the right of the removed second hopper toward the device and lift it up, you can remove the second hopper from the device body. Repeat this operation one after another, removing each second hopper in turn counterclockwise. This will leave you with the third hopper, which you can then remove by tilting it toward the device and lifting it up. This completes the removal of each hopper from the device body.

[0011] When attaching each removed hopper to the main body of the device, do so in the reverse order. That is, first, tilt the third hopper toward the device and hook the hanger unit onto the support bar of the main body of the device. In that state, raise the third hopper and engage the swing end of the link mechanism with the opening / closing lever on the main body of the device. This completes the installation of the third hopper.

[0012] Next, place the second hopper to the left of the third hopper and attach it to the device body in the same way. In this way, the same second hoppers are attached to the left of the second hopper in turn. Then, place the last remaining first hopper between the second hopper on the right and the third hopper on the left, and attach it to the device body in the same way. This completes the installation of all hoppers from the third hopper to the first hopper.

[0013] In this embodiment, each hopper can be removed in order by moving counterclockwise around the circumference of the circularly arranged hoppers, but in the clockwise direction, the hopper adjacent to the left prevents the right hopper from tilting, making it impossible to remove the right hopper. In that case, the problem can be solved by the following embodiment.

[0014] That is, the combination weighing device according to one embodiment of the present invention is The plurality of radially arranged radiating troughs are arranged so as to surround the outer periphery thereof, and each of the corresponding radiating troughs is A combination weighing device having a plurality of hoppers for respectively receiving articles discharged from a radial trough, The hoppers include a first hopper, a plurality of second hoppers, and a third hopper. The hopper includes a housing that temporarily stores and discharges the articles supplied from the radiation trough; an upper opening at the top of the housing for guiding articles supplied from the corresponding radiation trough into the housing; an outer wall having a height higher than the height of the discharge outlet of the radiation trough is provided on a side of the upper opening facing the discharge outlet of the corresponding radiation trough; Both ends of the first hopper in the left-right direction along the outer wall are located inside the outer walls of the hoppers located adjacent to each other, The left end of the outer wall of the second hopper is located inside the outer wall of the hopper adjacent to the left, while the right end is located outside the outer wall of the hopper adjacent to the right, The outer wall of the third hopper is located outside the outer walls of the hoppers located adjacent to it on both sides.

[0015] In this case, multiple second hoppers are arranged in sequence to the left of the first hopper, a third hopper is arranged to the left of the last second hopper, and another first hopper is arranged to the left of the third hopper. Therefore, when removing each hopper from the device, first tilt the first hopper toward the device and lift it up to remove it. Next, tilt the second hopper on the left toward the device and lift it up to remove it. In this way, each second hopper is removed in sequence in a clockwise direction, and finally, tilt the third hopper toward the device and lift it up to remove it. In this way, all of the hoppers can be removed from the device while going around the outer periphery of each hopper in a clockwise direction. When attaching each of the removed hoppers to the main body of the device, the hoppers can be attached to the main body of the device by following the procedure in reverse order in the same manner as described above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] According to the combination weighing device of one embodiment of the present invention, each hopper can be removed in order from the device body while the device is moving around the periphery. Furthermore, each removed hopper can be installed while the device is moving around in the opposite direction. Therefore, the hopper removal and installation work can be completed in a short time, which makes the hopper cleaning work more efficient. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is an external perspective view of an embodiment of a combination weighing device according to the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a front view showing the arrangement of the first to third hoppers. [Figure 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a schematic explanatory diagram for explaining problems of the conventional device of the other invention 1. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram of an embodiment of Other Invention 1. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a schematic explanatory diagram for explaining the problems of the conventional device of Other Invention 2. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a schematic explanatory diagram of another embodiment of the invention 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, this embodiment does not limit the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, in the description of the drawings, identical or similar parts are designated by the same or similar reference numerals. However, the drawings are schematic, and the ratios of dimensions, etc., differ from those of the actual product. In addition, in this specification and drawings, elements having substantially the same function and configuration are designated by the same reference numerals, and elements not directly related to the present invention are not shown.

[0019] <Outline of the configuration of the present invention> Fig. 1 shows an external perspective view of a combination weighing device 100 according to one embodiment, and Fig. 2 is a front view showing the arrangement of a first hopper 10, a second hopper 20, and a third hopper 30. In these figures, the combination weighing device 100 comprises a dispersion feeder DF at the upper center of the device, a plurality of radial feeders RF arranged radially around the dispersion feeder DF, a plurality of pool hoppers PH arranged in a ring shape around the outer periphery of the dispersion feeder DF, an equal number of weighing hoppers WH arranged correspondingly below each pool hopper PH, and a collecting chute CS arranged below each weighing hopper WH. In the following description, the pool hopper PH may be simply referred to as a "hopper."

[0020] The dispersion feeder DF disperses and supplies items such as bean sprouts fed from above the device to the surrounding area, and is equipped with a conical dispersion table 1 supported by an electromagnetic vibrator (not shown), and a cone-shaped protrusion 2 attached to the upper center of the dispersion table 1. The dispersion table 1 and protrusion 2 act to disperse items fed from above to the surrounding radial feeders RF by the spiral reciprocating motion of the electromagnetic vibrator, while loosening the items fed from above.

[0021] The radial feeder RF includes a flat, fan-shaped radial trough T and an electromagnetic vibrator (not shown) that vibrates the radial trough T diagonally up and down along the radial direction. A triangular roof-like sorting cover 3 is provided on the right edge of each radial trough T, covering the left edge of the adjacent right trough T. This sorting cover 3 extends so as to cover the gap between adjacent pool hoppers PH, and is formed so that it slopes upward as it approaches the pool hopper PH. This allows articles straddling the sorting cover 3 to fall into the opening OP of one of the pool hoppers PH due to the upward slope.

[0022] The pool hopper PH is composed of a first hopper 10, a second hopper 20, and a third hopper 30, each having an outer wall 40 with different shapes, and these hoppers 10, 20, and 30 are arranged in a ring shape around the outer periphery of a radiation trough T. As shown in Figures 3 to 5, each hopper 10, 20, and 30 has a housing B that temporarily stores and discharges articles supplied from the radiation trough T, an upper opening OP in the shape of an inverted square pyramid that is located at the top of the housing B and guides the articles supplied from the radiation trough T into the housing B, an opening / closing gate G provided at the lower opening, a link mechanism LM that opens and closes the opening / closing gate G, and a hanger unit HU that attaches the hoppers 10, 20, and 30 by hanging them on a horizontal support bar of the device main body (not shown).

[0023] Of the four side walls W that constitute the housing B of each hopper 10, 20, 30, an outer wall 40 that is higher than the height H of the discharge outlet EX of the radiation trough T is provided on the upper part of the side wall W that faces the discharge outlet EX of the radiation trough T.

[0024] 2, both left and right end portions 41 of the outer wall 40 of the first hopper 10 are configured to be located inside the outer walls 40 of the adjacent second hopper 20 and third hopper 30. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, both left and right end portions 41 of the first hopper 10 are bent inward so as not to interfere with the outer walls 40 of the adjacent second hopper 20 and third hopper 30.

[0025] The right end 42R of the outer wall 40 of the second hopper 20 is configured to be located inside the outer wall 40 of the adjacent hopper 20 on the right. Specifically, as shown in Figures 1 and 4, the right end 42R of the outer wall 40 of the second hopper 20 is bent inward so as not to interfere with the left end of the outer wall 40 of the adjacent second hopper 20 on the right or the third hopper 30 in Figure 1.

[0026] On the other hand, the left end 42L of the outer wall 40 of the second hopper 20 is configured to be located outside the outer wall 40 of the first hopper 10 adjacent to it on the left side. Also, as shown in Fig. 1, since identical second hoppers 20 are sequentially arranged to the right of a second hopper 20, the left end 42L of the outer wall 40 of the second hopper adjacent to the right of a second hopper 20 is configured to be located outside the right end 42R of the second hopper 20 located further to the left. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 4, the left end 42L is formed flat without being bent inward.

[0027] 1 and 5, both end portions 43 of the outer wall 40 of the third hopper 30 are configured to be located outside the outer walls 40 of the adjacent first hopper 10 or second hopper 20. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 5, both end portions 43 of the outer wall 40 of the third hopper 30 are not bent inward but remain flat.

[0028] 2 and 3, the upper ends of the two opposing side walls 40a, 40b in the direction intersecting with the outer wall 40 are curved outward in an arch shape, and the arch portions 44 are configured to overlap the upper ends of the side walls 40a, 40b of the adjacent second hopper 20 or third hopper 30. As a result, the arch portions 44 cover the gaps that occur between the hoppers PH.

[0029] 2 and 4, of the two opposing side walls 40a, 40b in the direction intersecting with the outer wall 40, the upper end of the right outer wall 40b is also curved outward in an arch shape, and the arch portion 44 is configured to overlap the upper end of the side wall 40a of the adjacent second hopper 20 or third hopper 30. As a result, the gaps that occur between the hoppers PH are covered by the arch portion 44, preventing articles from falling through the gaps.

[0030] Each hopper PH is equipped with an opening / closing gate G, a link mechanism LM, and a hanger unit HU. A roller 5 is attached to the swinging end 4 of the link mechanism LM, and the roller 5 engages with the swinging opening / closing lever on the device body. Therefore, with the hopper PH tilted toward the device, the hook 6 of the hanger unit HU is hooked onto the support bar on the device body, and while raising the hopper PH, the roller 5 engages with the opening / closing lever, completing the installation of the hopper PH. Conversely, if the hopper PH is tilted toward the device, the roller 5 moves away from the opening / closing lever, and if the hopper PH is lifted in this state, the hook 6 moves away from the support bar, allowing it to be removed.

[0031] Therefore, when removing each hopper PH, first, in Fig. 1, tilt inward the first hopper 10 whose both left and right end portions 41 of the outer wall 40 are located more inside than the outer walls 40 of the adjacent hoppers PH. Then, the rollers 5 of the first hopper 10 move away from the opening / closing lever of the device main body, and if the first hopper 10 is lifted in this state, the hooks 6 of the hanger unit HU move away from the support bar, making it possible to remove it.

[0032] Next, when the second hopper 20 to the right of the removed first hopper 10 is tilted toward the device, the rollers 5 of the second hopper 20 are released from the opening / closing lever, and when the tilted second hopper 20 is lifted in this state, the hooks 6 are released from the support bar and can be removed.

[0033] In this way, the second hoppers 20 are sequentially removed counterclockwise, and finally, the third hopper 30 is tilted toward the device and lifted up, completing the removal of all the hoppers PH.

[0034] When attaching each hopper PH to the device body, the third hopper 30 is attached first, then the second hoppers 20 are attached in order in a clockwise direction, and finally the first hopper 10 is attached, completing the attachment of all the hoppers PH.

[0035] <Outline of the second embodiment> In the above embodiment, each hopper PH is removed in order while going around the outer periphery of the hoppers PH in a counterclockwise direction. However, if the hoppers PH are to be removed while going around the periphery in a clockwise direction, the first hopper 10 and the third hopper 30 have the same configuration, and only the outer wall 40 of the second hopper 20 has an opposite configuration. Specifically, the left end 42L of the outer wall 40 of the second hopper 20 is bent inward to form an arch portion 44. The right end 42R of the outer wall 40 of the second hopper 20 is left flat, and no arch portion 44 is formed there.

[0036] 1 and 2. Specifically, the third hopper 30 is placed to the right of the first hopper 10, and the second hoppers 20 are sequentially placed to the left of the first hopper 10. With this arrangement, the right end 41 of the first hopper 10 is located inside the outer wall 40 of the third hopper 30, and the left end 41 of the first hopper 10 is located inside the outer wall 40 of the second hopper 20. Therefore, the first hopper 10 can be removed by tilting it toward the device and lifting it up.

[0037] Furthermore, because the same second hopper 20 is disposed to the left of the second hopper 20, the left end 42L of the second hopper 20 is located inside the right end 42R of the second hopper 20 to the left of it. Therefore, when the hopper PH immediately to the right of the second hopper 20 is removed, there is no obstacle to the right of the second hopper 20, so the second hopper 20 can be tilted toward the device and removed. As a result, the first hopper 10 can be removed first, then each second hopper 20 can be removed in order in a clockwise direction, and finally the third hopper 30 can be removed.

[0038] When installing the removed hoppers PH in the device, install them counterclockwise. That is, install the third hopper 30 first, then install the second hoppers counterclockwise, and finally install the first hopper 10. This allows the installation and removal of the hoppers PH to be completed in a short time.

[0039] <Other invention 1> 6 is an explanatory diagram of a combination weighing device in which a ring shutter RS ​​is placed inside an inverted cone-shaped collecting chute CS. The ring shutter RS ​​temporarily blocks the items M being discharged from the weighing hoppers WH, and then, when a discharge request is received from the packaging device below, the ring shutter RS ​​is raised to simultaneously discharge the blocked items M. For this reason, the ring shutter RS ​​is configured so that a ring-shaped flexible member made of, for example, a polyurethane sheet or the like is moved up and down by a lifting mechanism.

[0040] However, when the ring shutter RS ​​descends and comes into contact with the collecting chute CS, the ring-shaped flexible member bulges outward slightly, narrowing the gap between the bulging member and the collecting chute CS. If the falling article M becomes caught in this gap, the article M will bounce up when the ring shutter RS ​​rises, and the timing of the discharge of the article M into the packaging device will not be synchronized, resulting in the problem of the article getting caught in the sealed portion of the bag.

[0041] Therefore, in the present invention 1, as shown in FIG. 7, a collecting chute CS is provided which collects and discharges the articles M discharged from the multiple hoppers WH on an inverted truncated cone-shaped inclined surface S, a ring-shaped shutter RS ​​that is located within the collecting chute CS and moves up and down between a position P in contact with the inclined surface S and a position away from the inclined surface S, The inclination angle a of the first inclined surface S1 at the position P where the inclined surface S contacts the shutter RS ​​is gentler than the inclination angle b of the second inclined surface S2 that continues up and down from the first inclined surface S1.

[0042] In this way, the inclination angle a of the first inclined surface S1 when the ring shutter RS ​​contacts the inclined surface S is gentler than the inclination angle b of the other second inclined surface S2, so the angle at which the article M is pinched between the shutter RS ​​and the chute CS is wider, which makes it possible to prevent the article M from bouncing up when the ring shutter RS ​​rises.

[0043] <Other invention 2> For example, when combining and weighing chicken breast meat (product) each weighing 200g to 300g to a target weight (2kg), a large-capacity hopper is used. However, with conventional hoppers, as shown in Figure 8, when multiple products M, M1 are fed into the hopper H at the same time, the multiple products M1 sandwiched between the sides SW of the hopper H push against each other, and even when the opening / closing gate G of the hopper H opens, the products M1 that are pushing against each other cannot be discharged.

[0044] The present invention aims to solve such problems, and in FIG. A hopper H has an opening OP at its top for receiving an item M to be supplied, and an opening / closing gate G at its bottom for discharging the item M, The hopper body BD forming the opening OP has four side surfaces W1 to W4, one side surface W1 is formed as an inclined surface that allows the article M to slide down, and the other three side surfaces W2 to W4 are formed as substantially vertical side surfaces, The hopper body BD, which is surrounded by the inclined surface W1 and the other three side surfaces W2 to W4, is characterized by being designed to a size that allows the multiple items M to be stacked one on top of the other, rather than being arranged side by side.

[0045] As a result, the multiple items M supplied to the hopper H are stored in a vertically stacked state without being pushed together sideways, so that when the lower opening / closing gate G opens, the stacked items M are discharged in order from the bottom up. This prevents clogging of the items M. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] RF radiation trough PH Hopper 10 First Hopper 20 Second Hopper 30 Third Hopper B chassis OP upper opening EX outlet 40 Exterior Wall 41 Both ends in the left and right direction 42R Right side end 42L left end 100 Combination weighing device

Claims

1. A combination weighing device including a plurality of hoppers arranged to surround the outer periphery of a plurality of radial troughs arranged radially, each hoppers receiving an article discharged from each of the radial troughs, The hoppers include a first hopper, a plurality of second hoppers, and a third hopper. The hopper includes a housing that temporarily stores and discharges the articles supplied from the radiation trough; an upper opening at an upper portion of the housing for guiding the article supplied from the radiation trough into the housing; an outer wall having a height higher than the height of the discharge outlet of the radiation trough is provided on a side of the upper opening facing the discharge outlet of the radiation trough; Both ends of the first hopper in the left-right direction along the outer wall are located inside the outer walls of the adjacent hoppers, a right end portion of the outer wall of the second hopper is located inside the outer wall of the adjacent hopper on the right, while a left end portion of the second hopper is located outside the outer wall of the adjacent hopper on the left, The outer wall of the third hopper is located outside the outer walls of the adjacent hoppers on both sides. Combination weighing device.

2. A combination weighing device including a plurality of hoppers arranged to surround the outer periphery of a plurality of radial troughs arranged radially, each hoppers receiving an article discharged from each of the radial troughs, The hoppers include a first hopper, a plurality of second hoppers, and a third hopper. The hopper includes a housing that temporarily stores and discharges the articles supplied from the radiation trough; an upper opening at an upper portion of the housing for guiding the article supplied from the radiation trough into the housing; an outer wall having a height higher than the height of the discharge outlet of the radiation trough is provided on a side of the upper opening facing the discharge outlet of the radiation trough; Both ends of the first hopper in the left-right direction along the outer wall are located inside the outer walls of the adjacent hoppers, The left end of the outer wall of the second hopper is located inside the outer wall of the hopper adjacent to the left, while the right end of the second hopper is located outside the outer wall of the hopper adjacent to the right, The outer wall of the third hopper is located outside the outer walls of the adjacent hoppers on both sides. Combination weighing device.

Images