Cutting apparatus and program for cutting apparatus

Abstract

To provide a cutting device for cutting out a food piece from a lump of food, capable of well placing another food material or the like on the cut out food piece.SOLUTION: A cutting device 100 includes a cutting means 10 for cutting food pieces from a lump of food, a conveyor 20 for receiving food pieces cut by the cutting means 10, and a controller 30 for controlling operations of the cutting means 10 and the conveyor 20, wherein the controller 30 stops a cutting operation by the cutting means 10 and a conveying operation by the conveyor 20 at a predetermined stop timing, and receives a start signal for restarting the cutting operation and the conveying operation. A cutting operation and a conveying operation are restarted, and the stop of the cutting operation and the conveying operation at a predetermined stop timing and the restart of the cutting operation and the conveying operation by a start signal are repeated.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cutting device and a program for the cutting device. [Background technology]

[0002] As shown in Patent Document 1, a conventional cutting device is configured to cut sliced ​​meat from a block of meat and stack the sliced ​​meat on a conveyor while shifting the sliced ​​meat by a predetermined pitch to form a group of sliced ​​meat (hereinafter also referred to as "scaled meat").

[0003] Incidentally, the above-mentioned cutting device may be used, for example, in a process in which cheese is manually placed on scalloped meat formed on a conveyor, and the cheese is then wrapped around the scalloped meat.

[0004] However, the conveyor described above moves in small increments at a predetermined pitch to form the scalloped meat, and then moves in large increments to create a gap between the scalloped meat and the next scalloped meat, so its movement is not regular, and it is difficult to manually place cheese on the scalloped meat while it is being transported.

[0005] However, even if you try to press the stop button when the formation of the scaled meat is complete, for safety reasons, the sliced ​​meat is hidden by a cover on the conveyor immediately after being cut, so it is actually difficult to time the above. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-185863 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a cutting device that cuts food pieces from a block of food, and that allows other ingredients or the like to be placed neatly on the cut food pieces. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In other words, the cutting device of the present invention is a cutting device comprising a cutting means for cutting food pieces from a block of food, a conveyor for receiving the food pieces cut out by the cutting means, and a controller for controlling the operation of the cutting means and the conveyor, wherein the controller is configured to stop the cutting operation by the cutting means and the conveying operation by the conveyor at a predetermined stop timing, and to resume the cutting operation and the conveying operation when it receives a start signal for resuming the cutting operation and the conveying operation, and is characterized in that the stopping of the cutting operation and the conveying operation at the predetermined stop timing and the resumption of the cutting operation and the conveying operation at the start signal are repeated.

[0009] With the cutting device configured in this way, the cutting operation and the conveying operation stop at a predetermined stop timing, so that by placing another ingredient on the food piece while it is stopped, it is possible to place the other ingredient more efficiently than if it were placed on a food piece in the middle of being conveyed.

[0010] However, if the cutting blade that constitutes the cutting means is also stopped when the cutting operation is stopped at the stop timing, it will take several seconds from the time the start signal is received until the food pieces are cut out, including the time it takes for the cutting blade drive motor to stabilize. If these several seconds are wasted every time the cutting operation is restarted, a long time will be lost in the overall work. Therefore, it is preferable that the controller stops the cutting operation at the predetermined stop timing while the cutting blade constituting the cutting means is still operating. In this case, the cutting blade is operating while the cutting operation is stopped, so the next food piece can be cut out quickly after receiving the start signal, thereby reducing time loss as much as possible.

[0011] From the standpoint of work efficiency, it is desirable to have as many food pieces as possible on the conveyor when it stops; in other words, it is desirable to send the leading food piece as far towards the front (downstream) of the conveyor as possible. Therefore, in a configuration in which one or more food pieces are transported by the conveyor while leaving a predetermined interval between them, it is preferable that the spacing movement, which is the operation of the conveyor to leave the predetermined interval between them, is repeated a predetermined number of times to reach the stopping timing. In this case, by testing in advance how many times the interval movement should be repeated to send the leading food piece as close to the end of the conveyor as possible and setting the number of times as a specified number, it is possible to place as many food pieces as possible on the conveyor after the cutting operation or transport operation has stopped, thereby improving work efficiency.

[0012] It is preferable that the specified number is changeable. In this case, the designated number can be set to an optimum value depending on the length of the conveyor, the length of the food pieces, or the overall length of a group of food pieces made up of multiple food pieces.

[0013] A more specific embodiment is one in which the controller has a designated number receiving unit that receives the designated number, a start signal receiving unit that receives the start signal, and an operation control unit that controls the cutting operation and the conveying operation based on the designated number received by the designated number receiving unit and the start signal received by the start signal receiving unit.

[0014] It is preferable that, when the cutting operation and the conveying operation are stopped at the stopping timing, all of the food pieces on the conveyor face a space accessible from above. This way, you can efficiently place other ingredients on all the food pieces.

[0015] In addition, the program for a cutting device of the present invention is a program used in a cutting device that has a cutting means for cutting food pieces from a block of food, a conveyor that receives the food pieces cut out by the cutting means, and a controller that controls the operation of the cutting means and the conveyor, and is configured to cause the controller to stop the cutting operation by the cutting means and the conveying operation by the conveyor at a predetermined stop timing, and to resume the cutting operation and the conveying operation when it receives a start signal for resuming the cutting operation and the conveying operation, characterized in that the stopping of the cutting operation and the conveying operation at the predetermined stop timing and the resumption of the cutting operation and the conveying operation at the start signal are repeated. According to such a program for a cutting device, the same effects as those of the above-described cutting device can be achieved. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] According to the present invention configured as described above, in a cutting device that cuts out food pieces from a block of food, it is possible to place other ingredients or the like on the cut out food pieces. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the entire cutting device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a cutting means in the embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing scale meat in the same embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing functions of a robot controller in the embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the spacing movement of the scale meat in the same embodiment. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the robot controller according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a cutting device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0019] <<Cutting device configuration>> The cutting device 100 of this embodiment cuts food pieces from a block of food, and specifically, as shown in Figure 1, it includes a cutting means 10 that cuts multiple slices of meat from a block of meat, a conveyor 20 that receives the sliced ​​meat cut from the cutting means 10, and a controller 30 that controls the operation of the cutting means 10 and the conveyor 20.

[0020] As shown in Figure 2, the cutting means 10 has a meat box 11 for storing chunks of meat, a drive source 13 such as a motor for swinging the meat box 11 up and down around a swing shaft 12, and a cutting blade 14 such as a band knife or a round blade for slicing the chunks of meat.

[0021] In this configuration, a chunk of meat is fed out of the meat box 11 and cut by the cutting blade 14 with its tip in contact with the backing plate 15, thereby cutting out sliced ​​meat with a thickness corresponding to the distance between the cutting blade 14 and the backing plate 15. The backing plate 15 can be moved in the direction in which the chunk of meat is fed out, thereby making it possible to adjust the slice thickness.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 1, the conveyor 20 conveys the sliced ​​meat cut out by the cutting means 10, and is, for example, a belt conveyor having an endless conveyor belt 21 and a drive source 22 such as a servo motor that drives the conveyor belt 21.

[0023] The controller 30 is physically a general-purpose or dedicated computer equipped with a CPU, memory, etc., and controls the cutting operation by the cutting means 10 and the conveying operation by the conveyor 20 in accordance with a cutting device program stored in the memory.

[0024] Specifically, the controller 30 controls the drive source 22 so that the conveyor belt 21 receives one slice of meat, moves a predetermined pitch, and then receives the next slice of meat. By repeating this pitch movement multiple times, as shown in Fig. 3, a scale-row meat M is formed in which multiple slices of meat are stacked while being shifted by a predetermined pitch.

[0025] When one piece of scale-lined meat M is formed, the controller 30 controls the drive source 22 to move the conveyor belt 21 by a predetermined distance (hereinafter referred to as "space movement") so as to leave a predetermined distance between this piece of scale-lined meat M and the next piece of scale-lined meat M.

[0026] In this way, the conveying operation by the conveying means is a series of repeated pitch movements and one interval movement, whereby a plurality of scale-lined meat M is continuously formed on the conveyor belt 21.

[0027] Thus, the controller 30 of this embodiment is configured to stop the cutting operation by the cutting means 10 and the conveying operation by the conveyor 20 at a predetermined stop timing, and resume the cutting operation and the conveying operation when it receives a start signal to resume the cutting operation and the conveying operation.

[0028] As a result, in the cutting device 100 of this embodiment, the cutting operation and the conveying operation are repeatedly stopped at a predetermined stop timing and restarted in response to a start signal.

[0029] It should be noted that the cutting stop timing, which is the timing at which the cutting operation is stopped, and the transport stop timing, which is the timing at which the transport operation is stopped, do not necessarily have to be simultaneous; for example, the cutting stop timing may be earlier than the transport stop timing, or the cutting stop timing may be later than the transport stop timing.

[0030] Furthermore, the cutting restart timing, which is the timing for resuming the cutting operation, and the transport restart timing, which is the timing for resuming the transport operation, do not necessarily have to be simultaneous; for example, the cutting restart timing may be earlier than the transport restart timing, or the cutting restart timing may be later than the transport restart timing.

[0031] Here, the above-mentioned controller 30 is configured to perform the functions of a designated number receiving unit 31, a start signal receiving unit 32, and an operation control unit 33, as shown in Figure 4, by running a cutting device program stored in memory and cooperating with the CPU and its peripheral devices.

[0032] The designated number receiving unit 31 receives a designated number for determining the above-mentioned stop timing, and specifically, the stop timing is determined when the above-mentioned interval movement is repeated a predetermined number of times.

[0033] In other words, the designated number receiving unit 31 receives the number of interval movements since the cutting operation and conveying operation started or resumed, in other words, the number of scaled meat M produced since the cutting operation and conveying operation started or resumed, as the designated number.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 4, the specified number can be set by the user via input means 40 such as a touch panel, and can be changed not only when the cutting device 100 is stopped, but also while the cutting device 100 is operating.

[0035] 4, the start signal receiving unit 32 receives a start signal input from outside via an input means 50 such as an operation button. However, the start signal does not necessarily have to be input manually from outside, and may be output automatically, for example, when a predetermined time has elapsed since the stop timing.

[0036] The operation control unit 33 controls the cutting operation and the conveying operation based on the designated number accepted by the designated number accepting unit 31 and the start signal accepted by the start signal accepting unit 32.

[0037] In the following, first, a control mode in which the operation control unit 33 stops the cutting operation and the transporting operation will be described, and then a control mode in which the operation control unit 33 resumes the cutting operation and the transporting operation will be described.

[0038] The operation control unit 33 counts the interval signals for moving the conveyor belt 21 by the interval, and determines the timing to stop based on the count number (i.e., the number of repetitions of the interval movement), and stops the cutting operation and the conveying operation.

[0039] At this stopping timing, the operation control unit 33 is configured to stop the cutting operation while the cutting blade 14 constituting the cutting means 10 is operating, specifically, by stopping the oscillation (movement) of the meat box 11 while the cutting blade 14 is operating, the cutting operation, which is the cutting of sliced ​​meat, is stopped.

[0040] In addition, when a circular blade is used as the cutting blade 14, the operation control unit 33 may stop the cutting operation by stopping the relative movement of the circular blade with respect to the meat box 11 while continuing to rotate the circular blade.

[0041] Furthermore, the operation control unit 33 stops the driving source 22 at the stop timing, thereby stopping the conveyance of the scaly meat M by the conveyor 20.

[0042] Here, for safety reasons, the sliced ​​meat immediately after being cut is delivered to a location on the conveyor 20 that is covered by the cover 16, as shown in Figure 3. For this reason, although it may depend on the distance of the interval movement and the shape of the cover 16, the scalloped meat M transported in the interval movement just before the stopping timing is still covered by the cover 16, which may make it difficult to place cheese or the like on top of it.

[0043] Therefore, as shown in Figure 5, the operation control unit 33 of this embodiment makes the movement distance L2 (see Figure 5e) of the specified number of interval movements (i.e., the last) of the interval movements that are repeated until the stop timing longer than the movement distance L1 (see Figures 5a to 5d) of the first to (specified number - 1) interval movements (i.e., other than the last).

[0044] As a result, when the cutting operation and conveying operation are stopped at the stopping timing, all of the scaled meat M on the conveyor 20 faces a space that is accessible from above, in other words, all of the scaled meat M on the conveyor 20 is visible from above.

[0045] On the other hand, when the start signal receiving unit 32 receives the start signal, the operation control unit 33 uses this as an opportunity to restart the stopped cutting operation and transport operation.

[0046] Specifically, a control signal is output to drive source 13 to restart the rocking (movement) of meat box 11, and a control signal is output to drive source 22 to restart the conveying operation of conveyor belt 21.

[0047] <<Cutting device operation>> Next, the operation of the cutting device 100 configured as above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0048] First, the user sets a designated number via input means 40 such as a touch panel (S1). The user can also set or change the number of slices of meat that will form the scaly meat M, the target thickness of the slices, etc. via this input means 40.

[0049] After setting the designated number, the user inputs a start signal for starting the cutting operation and the transport operation via the input means 50 such as an operation button (S2).

[0050] Next, when the start signal receiving unit 32 receives a start signal, the operation control unit 33 operates the cutting means 10 and the conveyor 20, and the cutting operation and the transporting operation are started (S3).

[0051] Specifically, the meat box 11 starts to swing, so that the sliced ​​meat is cut out, and the conveyor 20 is moved pitchwise to form the scalloped meat M consisting of a plurality of sliced ​​meat (S4).

[0052] When the scaled meat M is formed, the operation control section 33 conveys the scaled meat M downstream by moving the conveyor belt 21 at intervals (S5), and increments the count number of this interval movement by one (S6).

[0053] Thereafter, the operation control unit 33 determines whether the count number has reached the designated number set in S1 minus 1 (designated number - 1) (S7).

[0054] In S7, if the count number does not reach the designated number minus 1, the control returns to S4, and the next scale-row meat M is formed.

[0055] On the other hand, if the count number reaches (designated number - 1) in S7, the operation control unit 33 controls the cutting means 10 and the conveyor 20 to form the last scaly meat M before the stopping timing is reached (S8).

[0056] When this scaly meat M is formed, the operation control section 33 first stops the meat box 11 and stops the cutting operation by the cutting means 10 (S9).

[0057] Then, the operation control unit 33 moves the scaled meat M formed in S8 a distance longer than the scaled meat M formed in S4 (S10), and then stops the drive source 22 to stop the conveying operation by the conveyor 20 (S11).

[0058] As described above, in this embodiment, the timing at which the cutting operation stops is slightly earlier than the timing at which the conveying operation stops, and the timings at which the two operations stop are offset, but for example, the timing at which the cutting operation stops in S9 may be made to coincide with the timing at which the conveying operation stops in S11. However, in this case, there is a possibility that the next slice of meat may be cut out by the cutting means 10 while the scaled meat M is being moved a distance in S10.

[0059] In the stopped state of S11, various manual operations are carried out, such as placing cheese on the scalloped meat M and wrapping the cheese with the scalloped meat M (S12).

[0060] Thereafter, for example, the manually processed scaled meat M is transferred to the downstream conveyor 20 or transferred to a container, and after the scaled meat M on the conveyor 20 is gone, the user inputs a start signal to resume the cutting and conveying operations via an input means 50 such as an operation button as necessary (S13).

[0061] Then, the process returns to S3, and thereafter, the operations from S3 to S13 are repeated as many times as necessary.

[0062] <<Effects of the cutting device>> According to the cutting device 100 configured in this manner, the cutting operation and the conveying operation stop at a predetermined stop timing, so that by placing another ingredient or the like on the food piece during the stoppage, it is possible to place the other component more effectively than when placing it on the food piece in the middle of being conveyed.

[0063] Furthermore, since the cutting operation is stopped with the cutting blade 14 constituting the cutting means 10 still operating at the timing of stopping, the next food piece can be cut out quickly after receiving the start signal, and time loss can be reduced as much as possible.

[0064] Furthermore, since the interval movement is repeated a preset number of times to reach the stop timing, it is possible to test in advance how many interval movements should be repeated to send the leading food piece as close to the front end of the conveyor 20 as possible, and by setting this number as a specified number, it is possible to place as many food pieces as possible on the conveyor 20 at the stop timing, thereby improving work efficiency.

[0065] Furthermore, since the specified number can be changed, the freedom in setting the stop timing can be improved, and the specified number can be set to an optimal value depending on the length of the conveyor 20, the length of the food pieces, or the total length of a group of food pieces consisting of multiple food pieces.

[0066] In addition, when the conveyor 20 stops, all of the food pieces on the conveyor 20 face a space that is accessible from above, so other ingredients, for example, can be efficiently placed on all of the food pieces.

[0067] <<Another embodiment of the cutting device>> The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment.

[0068] For example, in the above embodiment, the cutting operation is stopped at the stopping timing with the cutting blade 14 still in operation, but the cutting blade 14 may also be stopped at the stopping timing.

[0069] Furthermore, although the specified number in the above embodiment is a value that is input and set in advance by the user, for example, if a fixed distance is maintained from the beginning of one piece of scaly meat M to the beginning of the next piece of scaly meat M, the controller 30 may automatically calculate and set the specified number based on that fixed distance and the length of the conveying belt 21 (specifically, the length of the conveying surface).

[0070] Furthermore, instead of inputting the designated number, the position of the scale meat M may be detected using, for example, a camera or an optical sensor, and the timing of stopping may be determined based on this position data.

[0071] Furthermore, although the start signal is manually input from outside in the above embodiment, it may be generated automatically, for example, by the controller 30. In other words, the cutting device 100 may be configured to repeatedly stop the cutting operation and the conveying operation automatically at a predetermined stop timing and restart the cutting operation and the conveying operation manually or automatically in response to a start signal.

[0072] In the above embodiment, in a configuration in which adjacent scaled meat M is transported at a predetermined interval, the number of interval movements is used as the specified number, but in a configuration in which, for example, a large number of food pieces are transported continuously without any intervals, the number of cut food pieces may also be used as the specified number.

[0073] Furthermore, if the cutting operation is stopped, for example, by receiving a stop signal from an external source while forming the scaled meat M, and then a next start signal is received, the operation control unit controls the cutting operation and conveying operation so that the formation of the current scaled meat M is completed before the next scaled meat M is formed.

[0074] In the above embodiment, the conveyor 20 is described as conveying scaly meat M, but it may be configured to convey, for example, a single thick food piece.

[0075] Furthermore, the work that can be done while the cutting and conveying operations are stopped is not limited to placing cheese, but can also be various manual tasks such as sprinkling seasonings on the food pieces, making cuts or stamps on the food pieces, or molding the food pieces into a predetermined shape.

[0076] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] 100...Cutting device 10...cutting means 11...meat box 12. Oscillating shaft 13. Drive source 14...cutting blade 15 Backing plate 16 ···Cover 20 conveyor 21 Conveyor belt 22 Drive source 30 Controller 31....Specified number reception section 32 Start signal reception section 33 Operation control section M...scale meat 40 Input means 50 Input means L1: Travel distance L2...Movement distance

Claims

1. cutting means for cutting food pieces from the block of food; a conveyor for receiving the food pieces cut by the cutting means; A cutting device comprising a controller for controlling the operation of the cutting means and the conveyor, The controller: At a predetermined stop timing, the cutting operation by the cutting means and the conveying operation by the conveyor are stopped, When a start signal for restarting the cutting operation and the conveying operation is received, the cutting operation and the conveying operation are restarted, The cutting device is characterized in that the stopping of the cutting operation and the conveying operation at the predetermined stop timing and the restarting of the cutting operation and the conveying operation at the start signal are repeated.

2. The controller:

2. The cutting device according to claim 1, wherein the cutting operation is stopped at the predetermined stop timing while the cutting blade constituting the cutting means is kept operating.

3. In a configuration in which one or more of the food pieces are conveyed by the conveyor while being spaced apart by a predetermined distance, 2. The cutting device according to claim 1, wherein the conveyor is configured to perform spacing movement to provide the predetermined spacing, and the stopping timing is reached after the spacing movement is repeated a predetermined number of times.

4. 4. The cutting device according to claim 3, wherein the designated number is changeable.

5. The controller: a designated number receiving unit that receives the designated number; a start signal receiving unit that receives the start signal; 4. The cutting device according to claim 3, further comprising an operation control unit that controls the cutting operation and the conveying operation based on the specified number accepted by the specified number accepting unit and the start signal accepted by the start signal accepting unit.

6. 6. The cutting device according to claim 5, wherein when the cutting operation and the conveying operation are stopped at the stop timing, all of the food pieces on the conveyor face a space accessible from above.

7. A program used in a cutting device including a cutting means for cutting food pieces from a block of food, a conveyor for receiving the food pieces cut out by the cutting means, and a controller for controlling the operation of the cutting means and the conveyor, The controller, At a predetermined stop timing, the cutting operation by the cutting means and the conveying operation by the conveyor are stopped, When a start signal for restarting the cutting operation and the conveying operation is received, the cutting operation and the conveying operation are restarted, a cutting device program for repeatedly stopping the cutting operation and the conveying operation at the predetermined stop timing and restarting the cutting operation and the conveying operation in response to the start signal;

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