A device for holding roll-shaped packaging materials, a splicing device, and a method for holding roll-shaped packaging materials.

Abstract

The present invention provides a roll-shaped packaging material holding device, a splicer device, and a method for holding roll-shaped packaging material that can reliably hold (align) roll-shaped packaging material in a predetermined position on a holding shaft. [Solution] The roll-shaped packaging material holding device comprises a holding shaft that can be inserted into the core of the roll-shaped packaging material, a support part that supports one end of the holding shaft in a cantilevered manner, a positioning member that positions the roll-shaped packaging material on the holding shaft, a driving means that can move and stop the positioning member at any position along the longitudinal direction of the holding shaft, and a control means. When the roll-shaped packaging material is loaded from the outside and the roll-shaped packaging material is positioned on the other end of the holding shaft in the longitudinal direction, the control means controls the driving means to bring the positioning member into contact with one side of the roll-shaped packaging material that is closer to the support part, and move it in the opposite direction to the loading direction of the roll-shaped packaging material, thereby holding the roll-shaped packaging material in a predetermined position.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a rolled packaging material holding device, a splicer device, and a rolled packaging material holding method.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a packaging machine is known that continuously packages articles by supplying a packaging material (film) to articles that are continuously conveyed, wrapping the articles while the packaging material travels in the conveying direction, and sealing and cutting the packaging material. In this type of packaging machine, the used original roll that has finished supplying is removed and replaced with a new original roll, and the trailing end of the used original roll that has finished supplying needs to be connected to the leading end of the new original roll.

[0003] For this reason, as a packaging material supply device that supplies the packaging material upstream of the packaging machine, an apparatus is used that holds an original roll being supplied (the currently supplying original roll) and a spare original roll to be used next to the currently supplying original roll (the standby original roll), and automatically exchanges the currently supplying original roll and the standby original roll (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

[0004] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a configuration in which, when a standby original roll is loaded onto a spare holding shaft, the film roll is pushed in one direction (the depth side) by a pair of pushing bodies arranged on the front and rear of the film roll to position it at a predetermined loading position.

[0005] Further, Patent Document 2 describes a configuration that includes a pusher body having pressing pieces facing both sides across the paper core shaft during transfer between old and new packaging materials, wherein when the new packaging material (new film roll) is to be held on the paper core shaft, it is pushed from the near side to the depth side by the near-side pressing piece, and when the old packaging material (old film roll) is to be collected, it is pushed back from the depth side to the near side by the depth-side pressing piece.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7367998 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2024-27973 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] However, conventional devices all had the problem of insufficient reliability in positioning the rolled packaging material on the holding axis (paper tube shaft) to be loaded. Because the rolled packaging material is heavy, the inertia in the loading direction must be sufficiently suppressed in order to securely hold it in the predetermined position.

[0008] Furthermore, when handling roll-shaped packaging materials, the weight changes depending on the type, thickness, and size of the material. This makes it difficult to position the packaging materials accurately when handling a variety of materials, as the inertia of each material changes. In addition, if roll-shaped packaging materials are not positioned correctly, they can meander during the packaging material transport process, leading to problems.

[0009] In the apparatus described in Patent Document 1, when loading a spare film roll, the rear-side press-feeder is also moved in the film roll loading direction (rearward). In the apparatus described in Patent Document 2, when holding the packaging material (new film roll) on the paper tube shaft, only the front-side press-piece is used to push it from the front to the back.

[0010] In other words, it is difficult to sufficiently suppress the inertia in the loading direction in either case, and there is a risk that the device may not be able to be reliably stopped at the predetermined position on the holding shaft (paper tube shaft).

[0011] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides a roll-shaped packaging material holding device that can automatically hold roll-shaped packaging material, a splicer device, and a method for holding roll-shaped packaging material that can reliably hold (align) roll-shaped packaging material at a predetermined position on a holding shaft. [Means for solving the problem]

[0012] The present invention relates to a roll-shaped packaging material holding device, comprising: a holding shaft that can be inserted into the core of a roll-shaped packaging material (hereinafter referred to as "roll-shaped packaging material"); a support portion that supports one end of the holding shaft in a cantilevered manner; a positioning member that positions the roll-shaped packaging material on the holding shaft; a driving means capable of moving and stopping the positioning member at any position along the longitudinal direction of the holding shaft; and a control means, wherein when the roll-shaped packaging material is loaded from the outside and the roll-shaped packaging material is positioned on the other end of the holding shaft in the longitudinal direction, the control means controls the driving means to bring the positioning member into contact with one side of the roll-shaped packaging material that is closer to the support portion, and move it in the opposite direction to the loading direction of the roll-shaped packaging material, thereby holding the roll-shaped packaging material at a predetermined position. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] According to the present invention, a roll-shaped packaging material holding device capable of automatically holding roll-shaped packaging material can be provided, and the roll-shaped packaging material holding device, splicer device, and method for holding roll-shaped packaging material can be provided, which can reliably hold (align) the roll-shaped packaging material at a predetermined position on the holding shaft. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This is a front view showing an overview of the splicer device according to this embodiment. [Figure 2] This figure shows the configuration of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to this embodiment, and (A) is a side view, (B) is a top view, (C) is a front view, and (D) is a front view. [Figure 3] This is a side view showing the holding axis according to this embodiment. [Figure 4] This is a side view illustrating the stopping position of the positioning member of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to this embodiment. [Figure 5]This is a side view for explaining the operation of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6] This is a side view for explaining the operation of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 7] This is a side view for explaining the operation of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 8] This is a side view for explaining the operation of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 9] This is a side view for explaining the operation of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to a modified example of the present embodiment. [Mode for Carrying Out the Invention]

[0015] Hereinafter, the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 of the present embodiment, the splicer apparatus 100 including the same, and the roll-shaped packaging material holding method will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, for convenience of explanation, the configurations are appropriately simplified or exaggerated for description.

[0016] The roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 of the present embodiment is a device that holds a roll-shaped packaging material (hereinafter referred to as "original fabric roll") and automatically receives and delivers the original fabric roll with a packaging material transfer means such as a robot, and is a device suitably used for, for example, an original fabric roll supply and recovery unit in the splicer apparatus 100 or the like.

[0017] Hereinafter, the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic front view showing an example of the splicer apparatus 100 having the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1. FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing the configuration of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1, where FIG. 2(A) is a side view, FIG. 2(B) is a plan view, and FIG. 2(C) and FIG. 2(D) are front views. FIG. 3 is a side view showing the holding shaft of the original fabric roll.

[0018] <Splicer Apparatus> Referring to Figure 1, the splicer device 100 is, for example, a rotary (two-axis turret type) device that holds a web roll YA2 being supplied and a standby web roll YA2, and automatically switches these rolls. The splicer device 100 includes a roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 (see Figure 2).

[0019] In the following description, the state shown in Figure 1 is used as a reference, the vertical direction of Figure 1 is defined as the vertical direction of the device (splicer device 100), and the horizontal direction of Figure 1 is defined as the horizontal direction of the splicer device 100. The lateral direction of the long packaging material YA1 is referred to as the packaging material width direction W. The packaging material width direction W is a direction extending toward the near side and the far side of the paper surface of Figure 1, the near side of the paper surface is referred to as the front side, and the far side is referred to as the rear side. The vertical direction of the splicer device 100 is referred to as the height direction H.

[0020] The splicer device 100 is a rotary splicer device that includes a rotary disk 103 rotating around a rotation axis C and a plurality of support shafts 104 provided on the rotary disk 103, and automatically switches the web roll YA2 held on one support shaft 104 and the other web roll YA2 held on the other support shaft 104.

[0021] Specifically, the splicer device 100 is provided with the rotary disk 103, for example, two support shafts 104, two guide rollers 106, two turn-back rollers 108, two first sealers 107, a position detection unit 30, a second sealer 109, a machine frame 40, the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1, a control unit 50, and the like.

[0022] Hereinafter, the main configuration of the present embodiment will be described, and descriptions of configurations that are the same as those of known splicer devices may be omitted in some cases.

[0023] The machine frame 40 is formed in a box shape, and the circular rotary disk 103 is fitted into a circular opening formed on the front surface of the machine frame. The rotary disk 103 is rotatably supported by the machine frame 40 around the rotation axis C passing through the geometric center of gravity of the rotary disk 103, by guide rollers (not shown) and the like arranged along the opening of the machine frame 40. The turntable 103 is rotated around the rotation axis C by a rotary drive mechanism (not shown). The rotary drive mechanism includes, for example, a motor and a gear transmission mechanism that transmits the motor's power to the turntable 103.

[0024] Each of the two support shafts 104 is rotatably attached to the turntable 103 by bearings or the like. The support shafts 104 pass through the turntable 103 from front to back (in the direction of the width of the packaging material W and in the direction of the rotation axis C of the turntable 103). The support shafts 104 are rotationally driven by a motor or the like (not shown).

[0025] The two support shafts 104 are positioned on the diameter of the turntable 103. When the turntable 103 rotates around the axis of rotation C, the relative positions of the two support shafts 104 remain fixed, while the positions of the two support shafts 104 change (revolve) in the circumferential direction of the turntable 103. For example, when the turntable 103 rotates 180 degrees, the positions of one support shaft 104 (and the raw material roll YA2 supported by it) and the other support shaft 104 (and the raw material roll YA2 supported by it) are swapped.

[0026] The raw material rolls YA2, each held by one of the two support shafts 104, continuously supply the packaging material YA1 to the downstream packaging machine. In Figure 1, for example, the packaging material YA1 (packaging material YA1a) drawn from the raw material roll YA2 (raw material roll YA2a) supported by the upper support shaft 104 (support shaft 104a) is continuously supplied to the downstream packaging machine.

[0027] While the packaging material YA1a is being supplied from the raw material roll YA2a to the packaging machine, the splicer device 100 can automatically attach the next raw material roll YA2b to the support shaft 104b using a robot or the like, and keep the new raw material roll YA2b on standby.

[0028] As the supplying raw material roll YA2a approaches the end of the packaging material YA1a and is joined with the packaging material YA1b of the new raw material roll YA2b, it moves downward due to the rotation of the turntable 103, and the paper tube is removed from the support shaft 104a by a robot or the like. When the supplying of the supplying raw material roll YA2a is finished, the other raw material roll YA2b, which was in standby, moves upward and begins supplying. The support shaft 104a moves to the position where the standby raw material roll YA2b (support shaft 104b) was located, and the next new raw material roll YA2 is loaded by a packaging material transfer means (not shown in Figure 1), such as a robot.

[0029] In this embodiment, for the sake of explanation, the raw material roll YA2 being supplied (here, raw material roll YA2a) is referred to as the "supplying raw material roll," and the raw material roll YA2 that is on standby (here, raw material roll YA2b) is referred to as the "standby raw material roll." The splicer device 100 automatically exchanges the supplying raw material roll YA2a, which is held on one support shaft 104a, with the standby raw material roll YA2b, which is held on the other support shaft 104b.

[0030] The two support shafts 104 are linked to a drive motor, such as a servo motor, via a clutch mechanism. When the clutch mechanism is engaged, the shafts rotate in response to the rotational output of the drive motor, causing the raw material roll YA2 to rotate and enabling the packaging material YA1 to be fed out at a predetermined speed. Alternatively, the two support shafts 104 may be driven by independent drive motors to feed out the packaging material YA1.

[0031] For example, one support shaft 104a is rotatably supported by a bearing at the rear of the turntable 103. At the rear of the turntable 103, the end of the support shaft 104a is fitted with a first gear via a first clutch mechanism. This first gear is connected via a drive gear to a position-controllable support shaft drive motor, such as a servo motor. As a result, when the clutch of the first clutch mechanism is engaged (connected), the rotational output of the support shaft drive motor is transmitted to the support shaft 104a, causing the raw material roll (in this case, the raw material roll being supplied) YA2a, which is integrally held by the support shaft, to rotate, and the packaging material YA1a is fed out at a predetermined speed. On the other hand, when the first clutch mechanism is disengaged (not connected), the rotational output of the support shaft drive motor is not transmitted to the support shaft 104a, and the support shaft 104a can rotate freely.

[0032] The other support shaft 104b is similar, and is rotatably supported by a bearing at the rear of the turntable 103. At the rear of the turntable 103, the end of the support shaft 104b is fitted with a second gear via a second clutch mechanism. This second gear is configured to mesh with the drive gear that the first gear meshes with. As a result, when the clutch of the second clutch mechanism is engaged (connected), the rotational output of the support shaft drive motor is transmitted to the support shaft 104b, causing the raw material roll (in this case, the standby raw material roll) YA2b, which is integrally held by the support shaft, to rotate, and the packaging material YA1b is fed out at a predetermined speed. On the other hand, when the second clutch mechanism is disengaged (not connected), the rotational output of the support shaft drive motor is not transmitted to the support shaft 104b, and the support shaft 104b can rotate freely.

[0033] During the preparation for joining packaging materials YA1a and YA1b, the support shaft 104b that holds the standby raw material roll YA2b is in a free state while the turntable 103 is rotating. The support shaft 104 (104a, 104b) is equipped with a braking means. When the turntable 103 rotates, the packaging material YA1b is pulled out from the standby raw material roll YA2b, which is supported by the freely rotating support shaft 104b. At this time, the braking means prevents the packaging material YA1b from being pulled out excessively due to inertia.

[0034] A support means (set stand) 105 for the packaging material YA1 is provided corresponding to each of the raw material rolls YA2. The set stand 105 consists of a base 105F on which a guide roller 106, a position detection means 30, a folding roller 108, and a packaging material fixing means 120 are attached, and the base 105F is fixed to a turntable 103. The opposing side of the base 105F is flat (table-shaped) and can support the packaging material YA1 on it. The guide roller 106 is located furthest from the corresponding raw material roll YA2 and guides the packaging material YA1 pulled from the raw material roll YA2 to the desired position. The position detection means 30 is a means for detecting a reference position provided on the packaging material YA1. The packaging material YA1 is provided with alignment marks (alignment marks, registration marks) that serve as reference positions at predetermined intervals (for example, the length of one package; cut pitch interval), and the position detection means 30 is a mark detection sensor that detects the alignment marks. The folding roller 108 is located immediately adjacent to the corresponding raw material roll YA2, and when wrapped around it, the pulling direction of the packaging material YA1 is changed to roughly the opposite direction. The packaging material fixing means 120 supports a portion of the packaging material YA1 on the set stand 105 and is a means for temporarily fixing and holding a portion of the packaging material YA1 relative to the set stand 105, and is, for example, an adsorption means capable of suction holding.

[0035] In this embodiment, a first sealer 107, which is part of the packaging material joining means 150, is placed on the set stand 105. The packaging material joining means 150 includes the first sealer 107 and the second sealer 109, and seals and joins the end side of the raw material roll YA2a being supplied and the start side of the raw material roll YA2b waiting.

[0036] Each of the two set stands 105 is fixed near its corresponding raw material roll YA2 and revolves in conjunction with the rotation of the raw material roll YA2. Hereinafter, the set stand 105 located near the raw material roll YA2a being supplied and corresponding to it (base 105F and the guide roller 106, mark detection sensor 30, folding roller 108, first sealer 107, and packaging material fixing means 120) will be denoted with the letter 'a', and the set stand 105 located near the standby raw material roll YA2b and corresponding to it (base 105F and the guide roller 106, mark detection sensor 30, folding roller 108, first sealer 107, and packaging material fixing means 120) will be denoted with the letter 'b'. The two set stands 105a and 105b are each attached to the turntable 103 at positions symmetrical to each other with respect to the rotation axis C of the turntable 103 and rotate together with the rotation of the turntable 103.

[0037] A second sealer 109 is provided on the radially outer side of the rotating disc 103, specifically on the upper right side of the rotating disc 103 in the front view of Figure 1. The second sealer 109 is movable radially across the outer circumference of the rotating disc 103 by an actuator 110. The second sealer 109 is equipped with a cutter (not shown) that can move back and forth radially across the rotating disc 103. The second sealer 109, actuator 110, and cutter (not shown) together with the first sealer 107 provided on the set stand 105 function as a packaging material joining means 150. The packaging material joining means 150 is a means for joining the end side of the packaging material YA1a of the raw material roll YA2a being supplied and the start side of the packaging material YA1b of the raw material roll YA2b waiting on the set stand 105.

[0038] Each part of the splicer device 100 is centrally controlled by the control unit 50. The control unit 50 consists of a CPU, RAM, and ROM, and performs various controls, including the feed control, rewind control, and rewind stop control described later. The CPU is a so-called central processing unit, and various programs are executed to realize various functions. RAM is used as the CPU's workspace. ROM stores the basic OS and programs executed by the CPU.

[0039] In this case, the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 is positioned below the turntable 103, specifically at a position around the 6 o'clock position (clock position) around the rotation axis C of the turntable 103. In other words, in this example, the positions of the raw material roll YA2b and support shaft 104b shown in Figure 1 (positions on the turntable 103) become the exchange position (circumferential exchange position Pr) for receiving and transferring the raw material roll YA2 to and from the external packaging material transfer means.

[0040] <Roll-type packaging material holding device> Figure 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1. Figure 2(A) is a side view showing the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 holding the raw material roll YA2, Figure 2(B) is a top view of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1, and Figures 2(C) and 2(D) are front views of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1.

[0041] Referring to Figure 2, the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 of this embodiment includes a holding shaft 11, a support part, a positioning member 12, a driving means 13, and a control unit. The control unit is the control unit 50 of the splicer device 100, but it may be a separate control unit. The holding shaft 11 is the support shaft 104 (support shaft 104b that supports the waiting raw material roll YA2b) in the splicer device 100.

[0042] The roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 holds the raw material roll YA2, which is transported from the outside, at a predetermined position on the holding shaft 11. Specifically, the predetermined position is, for example, the position where the center Yc (shown as a large dashed line in Figure 2(A)) of the width direction W of the raw material roll YA2 coincides with the center 11hc (shown as a dashed line in Figure 2(A)) of the holding area 11h of the holding shaft 11.

[0043] The holding shaft 11 of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 is supported and fixed in a cantilevered manner to the support part 103 at one end in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) (left side in Figure 2(A)), and the core of the raw material roll YA2 can be inserted from the other end (right side in Figure 2(A)). Hereinafter, the end of the holding shaft 11 fixed to the support part (rotating disc 103) will be referred to as the base end 11BT, and the other end as the tip end 11TT. The support part of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 is the rotating disc 103 in the splicer device 100.

[0044] The raw material roll YA2 is inserted and loaded from the tip 11TT side toward the base 11BT of the holding shaft 11 by, for example, a packaging material transfer means R (e.g., a robot) or by a worker. Hereinafter, the direction from the front side to the rear side (from the tip 11TT to the base 11BT of the holding shaft 11) in the splicer device 100 will be referred to as the loading direction Ld.

[0045] In this case, the raw material roll YA2 held on the holding shaft 11 has one side (the side facing the splicer device 100) (rear side Sb) that is close to (facing) the support part (rotating disc 103), and the other side (the side facing the splicer device 100) (front side Sf) that is close to (facing) the packaging material transfer means R.

[0046] The holding shaft 11 will be described with reference to Figure 3. The holding shaft 11 can be inserted inside the core (e.g., paper tube 300) of the raw material roll YA2 (e.g., the raw material roll that will become the standby raw material roll YA2b), and can hold (support) the paper tube 300 from the inside by means of air pressure or a physical engaging member (claw member). Specifically, the holding shaft 11 has, for example, a shaft body 111, a hole 112, and a claw member 113 that can move back and forth through the hole 112, and is an air shaft that allows the claw member 113 to move back and forth relative to the shaft body 111 by adjusting the air pressure. In this case, as shown in Figure 3(A), the holding shaft 11 can be inserted into the paper tube 300 by retracting the claw member 113 from the hole 112 radially inward of the shaft without applying air pressure. Furthermore, by applying air pressure while the shaft is inserted into the paper tube 300, the claw member 113 is made to protrude radially outward from the hole 112 as shown in Figure 3(B), thereby expanding the diameter of the shaft and supporting the paper tube 300 from the inside. In addition, the holding shaft 11 has, for example, multiple rollers 114 embedded in the surface of the shaft body 111, thereby reducing the frictional force when moving the raw material roll YA2 on the holding shaft 11.

[0047] Referring again to Figure 2, when loading the raw material roll YA2, if the raw material roll YA2 is positioned on the tip 11TT side of the holding shaft 11, the control unit 50 uses the driving means 13 to bring the positioning member 12 into contact with the side of the raw material roll YA2 closer to the support portion 103 (rear side Sb) of the raw material roll YA2, thereby moving the raw material roll YA2 in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld and holding the raw material roll YA2 at a predetermined position on the holding shaft 11. This will be explained in detail below.

[0048] The raw material roll YA2 held by the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 is transported by means of a packaging material transfer means R, for example, and its paper tube 300 is inserted into the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11 from the rear side Sb side, and pushed toward the base end 11BT (loading direction Ld) and held.

[0049] The packaging material transfer means R is, for example, a robot, or an automated transport device such as an AGV (Automatic Guided Vehicle) or AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot). The packaging material transfer means R has its own holding means (such as a robot hand RA) which is made of an air shaft similar to the holding shaft 11. The holding shaft 11 is selected to have an axial length longer than the width of the raw material roll YA2 to be held, but the robot hand RA of the packaging material transfer means R has an axial length shorter than the width of the raw material roll YA2 to be held. Therefore, the robot hand RA will hold the front side Sf side of the raw material roll YA2 (for example, a part of the paper tube 300) (see Figure 5(A)).

[0050] During supply, a portion of the paper tube 300 on the rear side Sb of the raw material roll YA2, held by the robot hand RA, is inserted into the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11 (see Figure 5(B)). In this state, the raw material roll YA2 is supported by the holding shaft 11 and the robot hand RA. The robot hand RA then retracts, withdraws from the paper tube 300, and the transfer of the raw material roll YA2 is completed. The control unit 50 then controls the positioning member 12 via the drive means 13 to move the raw material roll YA2, with a portion of the paper tube 300 on the rear side Sb inserted into the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11, to a predetermined position on the holding shaft 11.

[0051] Returning to Figure 2, the positioning member 12 is an arm-shaped member that positions the raw material roll YA2 at a desired position on the holding shaft 11. Here, as an example, one positioning member 12 is provided for one holding shaft 11.

[0052] As shown in Figures 2(C) and 2(D), the positioning member 12 has a contact portion 12A that can contact the sides (rear side Sb and front side Sf) of the raw material roll YA2 without contacting the holding shaft 11, and a support arm portion 12B extending from the contact portion 12A. One side of the contact portion 12A facing the machine frame 40 (rotating disc 103) (the left contact surface in Figure 2(A)) contacts the front side Sf of the raw material roll YA2, and the other side (the right contact surface in Figure 2(A)) contacts the rear side Sb of the raw material roll YA2. The contact portion 12A has a roughly C-shape that follows a part of the outer circumference of the holding shaft 11 without contact (see Figure 1). In addition, the paper core 300 may slightly protrude from the side of the raw material roll YA2. In this case, strictly speaking, the contact portion 12A will be in contact with the paper core 300. However, in this embodiment, the paper core 300 is considered to be part of the raw material roll YA2, and "the contact portion 12A is in contact with the side of the raw material roll YA2 (rear side Sb and front side Sf)" includes "the contact surface of the contact portion 12A is in contact with the paper core 300 protruding from the side of the raw material roll YA2." One end of the support arm portion 12B is connected to the contact portion 12A in the longitudinal direction, and the other end is connected to the driving means 13.

[0053] As shown in Figure 2(B), the drive mechanism 13 has a first drive unit 13A and a second drive unit 13B. The first drive unit 13A consists of, for example, a base 130 fixed to the machine frame 40, a rail 131 provided on the base 130 and extending in the axial direction of the holding shaft 11, a slider 132 that engages with the rail, a motor 133 that moves the slider 132, a cable carrier 134 that houses wiring, piping, etc. of the movable part, and moves the positioning member 12 back and forth in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the holding shaft 11. The second drive unit 13B has, for example, an air cylinder 135 fixed to the slider 132 of the first drive unit 13A, a pivot shaft 136, an operating shaft 137, etc. As shown in Figure 2(A), the pivot shaft 136 is inserted through the end of the support arm 12B opposite to the contact portion 12A and extends parallel to the holding shaft 11. The operating shaft 137 is fixed to the support arm portion 12B of the positioning member 12 and extends parallel to the holding shaft 11.

[0054] As shown in Figure 2(B), the tip of the air cylinder 135 is connected to the operating shaft 137. As shown in Figure 2(C), when the air cylinder 135 extends, it pushes the operating shaft 137 upward toward the holding shaft 11, causing the positioning member 12 to swing around the pivot shaft 136 and assume an upright position. Conversely, as shown in Figure 2(D), when the air cylinder 135 retracts, it pushes the operating shaft 137 downward toward the holding shaft 11, causing the positioning member 12 to swing in the opposite direction toward the pivot shaft 136 and assume a retracted position. The upright position is, as shown in Figures 1 and 2(A), a position in which at least the contact portion 12A (or its contact surface, hereafter the same) can contact the side surface of the raw material roll YA2 (paper tube 300). The retracted position is, as shown by the dashed line in Figure 2(D), a position in which the contact portion 12A is separated from the raw material roll YA2 so as not to interfere with the raw material roll YA2 in its largest diameter state (unused). The second drive unit 13B changes the positioning member 12 between an upright position and a retracted position. The second drive unit 13B is fixed to the slider 132 of the first drive unit 13A, and the first drive unit 13A moves the positioning member 12 in the axial direction of the holding shaft 11 together with the second drive unit 13B. In this example, the drive means 13 is fixed to the base 130, for example, the machine frame 40, and the drive means 13 and the positioning member 12 do not move from a predetermined circumferential exchange position Pr (in the case of Figure 1, below the turntable 103 (around 6 o'clock in the clock position centered on the rotation axis C of the turntable 103)) even when the turntable (support part) 103 and support shaft 104 are rotated.

[0055] The control unit 50 controls the drive means 13, enabling the positioning member 12 to move and stop arbitrarily in the axial direction of the holding shaft 11. The positioning member 12 can also transport the raw material roll YA2 by moving. In other words, the positioning member 12 can transport and stop (hold) the raw material roll YA2 arbitrarily on the holding shaft 11.

[0056] Figure 4 is a side view of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1, showing the position of the positioning member 12 moved by the control unit 50. When the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 is part of the splicer device 100, the holding shaft 11 is a support shaft 104 (104b) provided on the turntable 103. In other words, there are two holding shafts 11 in the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1, and their positions move (rotate) as the turntable 103 moves. The turntable 103 stops the holding shaft 11a (support shaft 104a) and the holding shaft 11b (support shaft 104b) at a position where it receives or hands over the raw material roll YA2 from an external packaging material transfer means or the like. This position (the position of the turntable 103 in the circumferential direction) is the circumferential exchange position Pr (see Figure 1). All of the holding shafts 11 described so far, including Figure 4, are located at the circumferential exchange position Pr.

[0057] One positioning member 12 is provided for each holding shaft 11, and can be moved and stopped at any position in the longitudinal direction of the holding shaft 11 by the control unit 50 and the driving means 13 (first driving unit 13A). Figure 4 shows the positions of the positioning member 12 that the control unit 50 stops at different timings in this embodiment.

[0058] The raw material roll YA2 is transferred from an external packaging material transfer means R, etc., to the holding shaft 11 located at the circumferential exchange position Pr. When the raw material roll YA2 is positioned (inserted) at the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11, the control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 with the drive means 13, bringing the positioning member 12 into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2 (the side surface closest to (facing) the rotating disc 103), and moves in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld of the raw material roll YA2, thereby controlling the holding (positioning) of the raw material roll YA2 at a predetermined position. Specifically, at this time, the control unit 50 performs two-stage positioning control to hold the raw material roll YA2 at a predetermined position (final holding position). In the two-stage positioning control (first positioning control and second positioning control), the control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 and stops it at, for example, the initial loading position Ps, the first initial position Ps1, the second initial position Ps2, the first position P1, and the second position P2 shown in Figure 4. Specifically, the contact surface of the positioning member 12 that contacts the front side surface Sf or the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2 is stopped at the initial loading position Ps, the first initial position Ps1, the second initial position Ps2, the first position P1, and the second position P2. In Figure 4, the dashed lines, single dashed lines, and large dashed lines show the positions of the raw material roll YA2 at different timings, and for the sake of explanation, the radial sizes are shown to be different, but in reality they are the same diameter.

[0059] The initial loading position Ps is the position at which the holding (loading) operation to the holding shaft 11 begins when the raw material roll YA2 is positioned (inserted) onto the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11 from an external packaging material transfer means R or the like. At this timing, the raw material roll YA2 (YA21) is in the state shown by the dashed line. The positioning member 12 at the initial loading position Ps is not in contact with the raw material roll YA2 and is located further forward (to the right in Figure 4) than the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2.

[0060] The first initial position Ps1 is the position at which the first positioning control is initiated. At this timing, the raw material roll YA2 (YA21) is in the state shown by the dashed line. When the positioning member 12 moves to the first initial position Ps1, the positioning member 12 (the contact surface of the contact portion 12A, and so on) comes into contact with the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2.

[0061] The first position P1 is the position where the positioning member 12 stops (temporarily stops) due to the first positioning control. At this timing, the raw material roll YA2 (YA22) is in the state shown by the large dashed line. Until the positioning member 12 moves to the first position (temporary stop position) P1, the positioning member 12 contacts the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 and transports the raw material roll YA2 backward. However, if the positioning member 12 stops at the first position (temporary stop position) P1, the raw material roll YA2 may move backward (to the left in Figure 4) away from the positioning member 12 due to inertial force corresponding to its weight, etc. In that case, for example, as shown by the large dashed line in Figure 4, the raw material roll YA2 (YA22) will be located behind the positioning member 12. The position of the raw material roll YA22 is not constant.

[0062] The second initial position Ps2 is the position at which the second positioning control is initiated. At this timing, the raw material roll YA22 is in the state shown by the large dashed line, but only the positioning member 12 moves to the second initial position Ps2. As described above, the temporary stopping position of the raw material roll YA22 is not fixed, so the second initial position Ps2 is set to a position closer to the turntable 103 side, which is the width of the raw material roll YA2 added to the first position P1. This safety distance is set to be greater than the expected amount of rearward movement of the raw material roll YA22 due to inertial force.

[0063] After the positioning member 12 moves to the second initial position Ps2, it advances forward, contacts the raw material roll YA2 with its rear side surface Sb, and then moves to the second position P2.

[0064] The second position P2 is the position where the roll stops according to the second positioning control. At this timing, the raw material roll YA2 (YA23) is in the state shown by the dashed line. When the positioning member 12 moves to the second position P2, the positioning member 12 is in contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2. The second position P2 is the final holding position of the raw material roll YA2.

[0065] The initial loading position Ps, the first initial position Ps1, the first position P1, and the second position P2 are preset (control-wise) by the width of the raw material roll YA2 (length in the width direction W of the packaging material). The second initial position Ps2 is preset (control-wise) by the first position P1, the width of the raw material roll YA2, and the safety distance.

[0066] For the sake of explanation, Figure 4 shows the positioning member 12 in an upright position. However, when the control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 in the axial direction using the drive means 13 (first drive unit 13A), it moves the positioning member 12 in a retracted position as needed to avoid interference with the raw material roll YA2 (details will be described later).

[0067] When receiving the raw material roll YA2 from the packaging material transfer means R, the control unit 50 first moves the positioning member 12 to the initial loading position Ps. Then, when the raw material roll YA2 is positioned (inserted) on the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11, the control unit 50 performs first positioning control. That is, the drive means 13 moves and stops the positioning member 12 to the first initial position Ps1, bringing the positioning member 12 into contact with the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2. The positioning member 12 is then moved in the loading direction Ld from the tip 11TT side to the base end 11BT side of the holding shaft 11, and stopped at the first position (temporary stop position) P1. The raw material roll YA2 is transported (pushed) by the positioning member 12, and the front side surface Sf is positioned (temporarily stopped) at the temporary stop position P1 or any position further rearward. The temporary stop position (first position) P1 of the positioning member 12 is closer to the turntable (support part) 103 than the final holding position (second position) P2.

[0068] Subsequently, the control unit 50 performs a second positioning control. That is, the driving means 13 moves and stops the positioning member 12 at the second initial position Ps2. The positioning member 12 is then moved from the base end 11BT side of the holding shaft 11 toward the tip end 11TT side, that is, in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld, and is brought into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2, which is temporarily stopped at an arbitrary position. After that, the positioning member 12 is moved further in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld and stopped at the second position (final holding position) P2. The raw material roll YA2 is conveyed (pushed) by the positioning member 12 and positioned at the final holding position P2 as the rear side surface Sb. The final holding position P2 is an appropriate holding position of the raw material roll YA2 that is set in advance on the holding shaft 11, for example, the position where the center 11hc of the holding area 11h of the holding shaft 11 coincides with the center Yc in the width direction of the raw material roll YA2. When the positioning member 12 (the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2) stops at the final holding position P2, the final holding position P2 is set such that the center 11hc of the holding area 11h of the holding shaft 11 coincides with the center Yc in the width direction of the raw material roll YA2. Since the width of the raw material roll YA2 is constant during the holding (loading) of a particular raw material roll YA2, in this embodiment, the position of the raw material roll YA2 in the direction of the holding shaft 11 is described as the position of the front side surface Sf or the rear side surface Sb.

[0069] In this embodiment, when the raw material roll YA2 is positioned (inserted) on the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11, the positioning member 12 is brought into contact with the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2, thereby pushing it toward the turntable 103, i.e., in the loading direction Ld, passing through the final holding position (second position) P2 and temporarily stopping the positioning member 12 at the first position P1, which is closer to the turntable 103 (first positioning control). Subsequently, the positioning member 12 is brought into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2 and pushed back toward the opposite side of the loading direction Ld, stopping the positioning member 12 at the final holding position P2 (second positioning control).

[0070] Furthermore, the control unit 50 makes the movement speed of the positioning member 12 different in the first positioning control and the second positioning control. Specifically, in the first positioning control, the control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 to the first position P1 at a first speed v1 to transport the raw material roll YA2, and in the second positioning control, it moves the positioning member 12 to the final holding position P2 at a second speed v2 which is slower than the first speed v1 to transport the raw material roll YA2.

[0071] To shorten the holding time for the raw material roll YA2, it is desirable to make the operation of each component as fast as possible. On the other hand, the raw material roll YA2 has considerable weight, for example when not in use, and the inertial force increases when it is moved in the loading direction Ld on the holding shaft 11. In particular, if rollers 114 are provided on the holding shaft 11 to facilitate loading, the inertial force becomes even greater, and suppressing this and ensuring that it stops reliably in the appropriate position (final holding position) places a large load on the drive means 13, which also hinders the miniaturization of the drive means 13.

[0072] Therefore, in this embodiment, when the raw material roll YA2 is pushed in the loading direction Ld, the positioning member 12 is brought into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2 on the holding shaft 11, which is close to the rotating disc 103, and the raw material roll YA2 is transported in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld (from the base end 11BT side to the tip end 11TT side) and stopped at the final holding position P2.

[0073] More specifically, the first positioning control moves the positioning member 12 at a relatively high first speed v1 from the tip 11TT side to the base 11BT side of the holding shaft 11 to transport the raw material roll YA2, passing the final holding position P2 and temporarily stopping the positioning member 12 at a first position P1 that is closer to the turntable 103 side than the final holding position P2. Subsequently, the second positioning control moves the positioning member 12 at a relatively low second speed v2 from the base 11BT side to the tip 11TT side of the holding shaft 11 to transport the raw material roll YA2 and stops it at the final holding position P2. As a result, even if the raw material roll YA2 temporarily stops behind the first position P1 due to inertia during the first positioning control, the second positioning control can stop the raw material roll YA2 at the final holding position P2. In other words, it is possible to accurately hold the raw material roll at the final holding position P2 while suppressing a significant decrease in processing speed.

[0074] Furthermore, the positioning of the raw material roll YA2 can be reliably performed with a single positioning member 12, enabling miniaturization of the device and simplification of control compared to a configuration using two positioning members.

[0075] <Method for holding roll-shaped packaging materials> Referring to Figures 5 to 7, the method for holding the raw material roll YA2 in the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 will be explained. Here, we will illustrate the case where the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 is part of the splicer device 100. Note that the roller 114 of the holding shaft 11 is omitted from Figure 5 onward.

[0076] First, Figure 5(A) shows the state in which the packaging material transfer means R has transferred the raw material roll YA2 to the splicer device 100 (roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1). The packaging material transfer means R is, for example, a robot, and is equipped with a shaft-shaped robot hand RA that is shorter than the paper tube 300 of the raw material roll YA2 and can be inserted into one end of the paper tube 300 to hold the raw material roll YA2. The length of the robot hand RA (length along the axial direction of the paper tube 300) is shorter than, for example, half the width of the raw material roll YA2 (length of the paper tube 300) (for example, about one-third the length of the paper tube 300), and the robot hand RA is inserted, for example, from the front side Sf side of the raw material roll YA2.

[0077] The control unit 50, for example, sets the positioning member 12 to its initial state at this timing. The initial state is the state in which the member is retracted so as not to interfere with the transported raw material roll YA2 at the initial loading position Ps.

[0078] The holding shaft 11 has moved to the circumferential exchange position Pr, and the robot R aligns the axis of the robot hand RA with the axis of the holding shaft 11 at the circumferential exchange position Pr and approaches the holding shaft 11. The claw member 113 of the holding shaft 11 is retracted into the hole 112.

[0079] Figure 5(B) shows the moment when the raw material roll YA2 is positioned (inserted) onto the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11 of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 by the robot R. The robot R aligns the axis of the robot hand RA with the axis of the holding shaft 11 of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 and inserts the raw material roll YA2 onto the holding shaft 11 from the rear side Sb. At this time, the paper core 300 of the raw material roll YA2 is held by the robot hand RA up to about one-third of the length from the front side Sf, and the remaining two-thirds of the length from the rear side Sb is held on the tip 11TT side of the holding shaft 11. Note that the ratio of the insertion amount of the robot hand RA and the holding shaft 11 to the total length of the paper core 300 is just one example. At this time, the holding shaft 11 causes the claw member 113 to protrude from the hole 112.

[0080] As shown in Figure 5(B), the raw material roll YA2 in the axial direction of the holding shaft 11 at the timing when the robot hand RA and the holding shaft 11 are transferring the material is in the state of raw material roll YA21 in Figure 4, and the position of the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 at this time is called the axial exchange position Px. The axial exchange position Px corresponds to the first initial position Ps1 of the positioning member 12.

[0081] As shown in Figure 5(C), when the robot R places the raw material roll YA2 on the tip 11TT portion of the holding shaft 11 of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1, the robot hand RA withdraws and retracts from the holding shaft 11.

[0082] Immediately after the robot R (robot hand RA) retracts from the holding shaft 11, the control unit 50 sets the positioning member 12 to an upright position and moves it to the first initial position Ps1. That is, the second drive unit 13B extends the air cylinder 135, bringing the operating shaft 137 closer to the raw material roll YA2 and setting the positioning member 12 to an upright position. Then the first drive unit 13A moves the positioning member 12 in the direction of the base end 11BT of the holding shaft 11 and stops it at the first initial position Ps1. In this state, the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2, which is stopped at the axial exchange position Px, comes into contact with the positioning member 12, preventing the raw material roll YA2 from falling off.

[0083] Subsequently, as shown in Figure 6(A), the control unit 50 starts the first positioning control. The control unit 50 controls the first drive unit 13A to move the positioning member 12 backward from the first initial position Ps1 (in the direction of the base end 11BT of the holding shaft 11) and pushes the raw material roll YA2 in the loading direction Ld. When transporting the raw material roll YA2 on the holding shaft 11, the claw member 113 is retracted into the hole 112.

[0084] Then, as shown in Figure 6(B), the control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 to a first position P1 further to the rear and temporarily stops it. At this time, the control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 at a first speed v1. The raw material roll YA2 is also transported (pushed) by the positioning member 12 and temporarily stops when the positioning member 12 is temporarily stopped. However, its position (the position of the front side surface Sf) may be the first position P1, or, due to inertial force, it may be at any position behind the first position P1, as shown in Figure 6(C) (first positioning control). The following explanation will use the case where the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 temporarily stops at an arbitrary position behind the first position P1 as an example.

[0085] Figure 7(A) shows the state in which the control unit 50 starts the second positioning control. The control unit 50 uses the second drive unit 13B to set the positioning member 12 to a retracted position and the first drive unit 13A to move it toward the second initial position Ps2 in order to start the second positioning control.

[0086] As shown in Figure 7(B), the control unit 50 sets the positioning member 12 to an upright position at the second initial position Ps2. At this point, the raw material roll YA2 has not moved from the state shown in Figure 6(C), and its front side surface Sf is positioned behind the first position P1. The second initial position Ps2 of the positioning member 12 is set to a position closer to the turntable 103 side, which is the width of the raw material roll YA2 plus a predetermined safety distance, from the first position P1. In other words, the temporary stopping position of the raw material roll YA2 is any position, but it is always in front of the second initial position Ps2. The control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 forward and brings it into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2, as shown in Figure 7(B).

[0087] The control unit 50 then controls the first drive unit 13A to move the positioning member 12 further forward (in the direction of the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11), as shown in Figure 7(C). In other words, the positioning member 12 moves in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld, and as a result the raw material roll YA2 is also pushed in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld.

[0088] Then, as shown in Figure 7(C), the control unit 50 controls the first drive unit 13A to move the positioning member 12 further forward to a second position (final holding position) P2 and stop it. The raw material roll YA2 is transported (pushed) by the positioning member 12 in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld, and the rear side surface Sb is positioned at the final holding position P2 (second positioning control). At this time, the control unit 50 moves the positioning member 12 at a second speed v2.

[0089] In this embodiment, when the raw material roll YA2 is held on the holding shaft 11 (when loading), the positioning member 12 is brought into contact with the rear side surface Sb which is in front of the loading direction Ld of the raw material roll YA2, and is moved in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld to position it at the final holding position P2.

[0090] This reduces the inertial force of the raw material roll YA2, making it possible to automatically hold it in the correct position.

[0091] More specifically, first, the positioning member 12 is brought into contact with the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 and pushed towards the rear of the splicer device 100 at a high first speed v1, temporarily stopping at the first position P1 after passing the final holding position P2. Then, the positioning member 12 is brought into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2 and pushed back towards the front of the splicer device 100, i.e., in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld, at a low second speed v2, stopping the raw material roll YA2 at the final holding position P2. This makes it possible to automatically and accurately hold the raw material roll YA2 in the correct position while suppressing a decrease in processing speed.

[0092] Furthermore, the raw material roll YA2 can be precisely positioned using a single positioning member 12, thereby reducing the cost of the device.

[0093] Furthermore, the positioning member 12 may change between its upright and retracted positions, and the timing of its movement may be such that it does not interfere with the raw material roll YA2, and it is sufficient that it moves to an appropriate position before the first and second positioning controls are performed, and is not limited to the above example. For example, at the time when the robot hand RA and the holding shaft 11 are transferring the material, the positioning member 12 may wait in the retracted position at the previous final holding position P2, and at the time when the robot R retracts from the raw material roll YA2, the positioning member 12 may move to the initial loading position Ps, then to the upright position, and then to the first initial position Ps1. Alternatively, at the time when the robot hand RA and the holding shaft 11 are transferring the material, the positioning member 12 may wait in the retracted position at the previous final holding position P2, and at the time when the robot R retracts from the raw material roll YA2, the positioning member 12 may move to the first initial position Ps1 (without moving to the initial loading position Ps) and then to the upright position.

[0094] In the splicer device 100, the raw material roll YA2 newly held on the holding shaft 11 of the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 becomes the standby raw material roll YA2b. When the end end of the packaging material YA1a of the supplying raw material roll YA2a is near, the splicer device 100 rotates the turntable 103 and joins the vicinity of the end end of the packaging material YA1a of the supplying raw material roll YA2a with the vicinity of the beginning end of the packaging material YA1b of the standby raw material roll YA2b. After that, the used supplying raw material roll YA2a (or its paper tube 300) is collected.

[0095] In other words, the rotation of the turntable 103 causes the holding shaft 11a (support shaft 104a) that holds the raw material roll YA2a (or its paper tube 300) to move to the circumferential exchange position Pr. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 then automatically discharges the unnecessary (e.g., used) raw material roll YA2 (or its paper tube 300).

[0096] Figure 8 shows the process of discharging the unused raw material roll YA2 (shown here as the paper tube 300). When discharging the used raw material roll YA2 (which was the raw material roll YA2a during supply) or the paper tube 300, as shown in Figure 8(A), the control unit 50 moves, for example, the positioning member 12 from its initial state to the second initial position Ps2.

[0097] Subsequently, as shown in Figure 8(B), the control unit 50 controls the second drive unit 13B to raise the positioning member 12 to an upright position at the second initial position Ps2. Then, as shown in Figure 8(C), the first drive unit 13A controls the positioning member 12 to move forward from the second initial position Ps2 (in the direction of the tip 11TT of the holding shaft 11), and at the final holding position P2, the contact portion 12A is brought into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the paper tube 300.

[0098] Then, as shown in Figure 8(D), the control unit 50 controls the first drive unit 13A to move the positioning member 12 further forward, stopping when the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 is in the axial exchange position Px. Although not shown in the figure, the packaging material transfer means R aligns the axis of the robot hand RA with the axis of the holding shaft 11, inserts the robot hand RA into a part of the paper tube 300, and holds and retrieves it. The control unit 50 sets the positioning member 12 to a retracted position and moves it to the initial loading position Ps to set it to the initial state.

[0099] The first position P1 and the second position (final holding position) P2 are set according to the width of the raw material roll YA2 (length of the paper core 300), and the control unit 50 controls the drive means 13 based on these set values.

[0100] <Variation> In the above embodiment, a configuration in which a single positioning member 12 is moved has been described. However, as shown in Figure 9, the positioning member 12 may also include a first positioning member 121 that moves in a section on the tip 11TT side of the holding shaft 11 and a second positioning member 122 that moves in a section on the base 11BT side of the holding shaft 11. In this case as well, the control unit 50 performs the first positioning control and the second positioning control described above. In the first positioning control, as shown in Figures 9(A) and 9(B), the first positioning member 121 is moved to a first position P1 to push (position) the raw material roll YA2 in the loading direction Ld. In the second positioning control, as shown in Figures 9(B) and 9(C), the first positioning member 121 is set to a retracted position, and the second positioning member 122, which is in an upright position, is moved in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld and stopped at the final holding position P2, pushing (positioning) the raw material roll YA2 back to the final holding position P2.

[0101] Furthermore, although the example given illustrates the supply of the raw material roll YA2 to the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 by the packaging material transfer means R, the supply of the raw material roll YA2 to the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 may also be done by an operator (manually). In that case, the operator positions the raw material roll YA2, which is positioned at the axial exchange position Px, to the final holding position P2 using the same operation as described above.

[0102] Alternatively, the roll-shaped packaging material holding device 1 of this embodiment may be configured to perform control (the second positioning control described above) by bringing the positioning member 12 into contact with at least the rear side surface Sb (the side surface closest to the rotating disc 103) of the raw material roll YA2 on the holding shaft 11, and transporting the raw material roll YA2 from the base end 11BT side to the tip end 11TT side, that is, in the opposite direction to the loading direction Ld, and stopping it at the final holding position P2. Therefore, the raw material roll YA2 may be pushed up to the first position P1 by an operator. The raw material roll YA2 may temporarily stop at the first position P1, or it may temporarily stop at any position behind the first position P1 due to inertial force. In that case, a sensor or the like may detect that the raw material roll YA2 has been pushed up to the first position P1, and based on this detection, the control unit 50 may perform only the second positioning control described above to position the raw material roll YA2 at the final holding position P2.

[0103] Alternatively, when supplying the raw material roll YA2 manually, the positioning member 12 may be moved to a second position (final holding position) P2 corresponding to the width of the raw material roll YA2 and stopped (fixed) in that position, bringing the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2 into contact with the positioning member 12. The positioning member 12 waits at the second position (final holding position) P2 to position the raw material roll YA2. In this case, the positioning member 12 can also be called a stopper.

[0104] Furthermore, instead of controlling the drive means 13 according to a preset value, the first position P1 and the second position (final holding position) P2 may be detected by a sensor, for example, installed on the turntable 103, to indicate when the positioning member 12 has reached the first position P1 and the second position (final holding position) P2, and the positioning member 12 may be (temporarily) stopped.

[0105] Furthermore, the above embodiment illustrates a case in which the drive means 13 and the positioning member 12 are fixed to the machine frame 40. That is, the holding shaft 11 rotates with the rotation of the turntable 103, but the drive means 13 and the positioning member 12 are fixed, for example, near the lower end of the turntable 103 as shown in Figure 1 (around the 6 o'clock position in the clock position). However, the embodiment is not limited to this, and the drive means 13 and the positioning member 12 may be attached to the support part (turntable 103) and rotate together with the turntable 103 (holding shaft 11). Specifically, the embodiment is the same as the above embodiment except that the base 130 of the drive means 13 is fixed to the turntable 103, the first drive unit 13A reciprocates the positioning member 12 in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) of the holding shaft 11, and the second drive unit 13B swings the positioning member 12 around a pivot axis 136 parallel to the holding shaft 11. As the turntable 103 (holding shaft 11) rotates, the drive means 13 and positioning member 12 also rotate. However, when the raw material roll YA2 is replaced (received and handed over), the holding shaft 11 is positioned at the circumferential replacement position Pr, and accordingly, the drive means 13 and positioning member 12 are positioned near the lower end of the turntable 103 as shown in Figure 1.

[0106] Alternatively, the robot hand RA may be equipped with a pushing member (pusher) for pushing the raw material roll YA2.

[0107] Alternatively, while the robot hand RA is holding the raw material roll YA2 (the standby raw material roll YA2b), the positioning member 12 may push it to a predetermined position. That is, although the example shown in Figure 5 describes a configuration in which the positioning member 12 pushes the raw material roll YA2 after it has been transferred from the robot hand RA to the holding shaft 11, the configuration is not limited to this, and the period during which the robot hand RA holds the raw material roll YA2 and the period during which the positioning member 12 is in contact with the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 may partially overlap. In this case, for example, as shown in Figure 5(B), the robot hand RA may be retracted (without being withdrawn from the paper tube 300) to the extent that the positioning member 12 can enter between the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 and the robot hand RA, and the positioning member 12 may be brought into contact with the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2 held by the robot hand RA. The raw material roll YA2 held by the robot hand RA may then be pushed to a predetermined position by the positioning member 12.

[0108] Alternatively, after removing the robot hand RA from the paper tube 300, the raw material roll YA2 may be transported to a predetermined position by the positioning member 12.

[0109] Furthermore, the packaging material transfer means R may support the outer circumference of the raw material roll YA2. Specifically, the packaging material transfer means R may support the outer circumference of the raw material roll YA2 with, for example, a plurality of rollers or a plurality of transportable endless bodies.

[0110] In the above embodiment, the roller 114 of the retaining shaft 11 is provided in a configuration that covers most of the longitudinal region of the retaining shaft 11 (for example, more than half the length in the longitudinal direction). However, the configuration is not limited to this, and for example, it may be provided only in the region on the tip 11TT side of the retaining shaft 11 (for example, a region with a length of one-third or less in the longitudinal direction including the tip 11TT).

[0111] Alternatively, the packaging material transfer means R (robot) and the positioning member 12 may cooperate to sandwich and transport and position the raw material roll YA2. Specifically, for example, when transferring the raw material roll YA2 to the holding shaft 11, the positioning member 12 is brought into contact with the rear side surface Sb of the raw material roll YA2, and then the robot hand RA is withdrawn from the paper tube 300. The robot hand RA is then brought into contact with the front side surface Sf of the raw material roll YA2, and the raw material roll YA2 is sandwiched between the robot hand RA and the positioning member 12 which is in contact with the rear side surface Sb. The positioning member 12 may then be moved to a second position P2 in sync with each other. In this case, it is not necessary to push back with the positioning member 12.

[0112] Alternatively, the robot hand RA, removed from the paper tube 300, may be used to move the raw material roll YA2 to the first position P1.

[0113] As stated above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible without departing from its spirit and technical concept. [Explanation of symbols]

[0114] 1. Roll-shaped packaging material holding device 11 Holding axis 11a Holding shaft 11BT proximal end 11TT Tip 12 Positioning member 12A Contact part 12B Support arm section 13 Driving means 13A First drive unit 13B Second drive unit 40 machine slots 50 Control Unit 100 Splicer Devices 103 Support section (rotating disc) Sb rear side SF front side 104, 104a, 104b Support shafts 105 Support means (set stand) 111 Shaft Body 112 Hole 113 Claw member 114 Laura 130 base 131 Rails 132 Slider 133 Motor 134 Cable Carrier 135 Air Cylinder 136 Pivot axis 137 Operation axis 150 Packaging material joining means 300 paper tube R Packaging material transfer means P1 First position (temporary stop position) P2 Second position (final holding position) Pr circumferential replacement position Ps Initial position when loaded Px Axial exchange position Ps1 first initial position Ps2 second initial position YA2 raw material roll

Claims

1. A retaining shaft that can be inserted into the core of a roll of packaging material (hereinafter referred to as "roll of packaging material"), A support portion that supports one end of the holding shaft in the longitudinal direction in a cantilevered manner, A positioning member for positioning the roll-shaped packaging material on the holding shaft, A drive means capable of moving and stopping the positioning member at any position along the longitudinal direction of the holding shaft, Control means and It has, When loading the roll-shaped packaging material, if the roll-shaped packaging material is positioned on the other end of the holding shaft in the longitudinal direction from the outside, the control means controls the driving means to bring the positioning member into contact with one side of the roll-shaped packaging material that is closer to the support portion, and move the roll-shaped packaging material in the opposite direction to the loading direction, thereby holding the roll-shaped packaging material in a predetermined position. A roll-shaped packaging material holding device characterized by the following features.

2. The positioning member is capable of transporting the rolled packaging material on the holding shaft. The control means is A first positioning control system that transports the roll-shaped packaging material to a first position which is a temporary stop position by bringing the positioning member into contact with one of the other sides of the roll-shaped packaging material, The positioning member is brought into contact with the first side surface to perform a second positioning control, which transports the roll-shaped packaging material to the second predetermined position. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 1.

3. The second position is the final holding position of the roll-shaped packaging material on the holding shaft, The first position is closer to the support portion than the final holding position. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 2.

4. The control means moves a single positioning member to the first position and the second position. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 2.

5. The control means controls the positioning member, The roll-shaped packaging material is transported by moving it to the first position at a first speed, The roll-shaped packaging material is transported by moving it to the second position at a second speed. The first speed is faster than the second speed. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 2.

6. The retaining shaft supports the winding core from the inside. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 1.

7. The holding shaft expands in diameter by air pressure to support the winding core from the inside. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 1.

8. The driving means is configured separately from the support portion. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 1.

9. A portion of the driving means is fixed to the support portion. The roll-shaped packaging material holding device according to feature 1.

10. A splicer device comprising a packaging material holding device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, The support part is a rotating disc that moves the position of the roll-shaped packaging material. A splicer device characterized by the following features.

11. Includes a packaging material transfer means for transferring the roll-shaped packaging material, The packaging material transfer means retracts from the holding shaft after inserting the core into the other end of the holding shaft. The control means moves the positioning member after the packaging material transport means has been retracted. The splicer device according to claim 10.

12. A method for holding a roll of packaging material in a roll-shaped packaging material holding device, the device comprising: a holding shaft for the roll of packaging material (hereinafter referred to as "roll-shaped packaging material"); a support portion that supports one end of the holding shaft in the longitudinal direction in a cantilevered manner; and a positioning member that can move and stop at any position along the longitudinal direction of the holding shaft, wherein The steps include inserting the core of the rolled packaging material into the holding shaft from the other end of the holding shaft in the longitudinal direction, The steps include: positioning the roll-shaped packaging material by bringing the positioning member into contact with one side of the roll-shaped packaging material that faces the support portion, using a control means; Having, A method for holding roll-shaped packaging material, characterized by the features described herein.

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