Conveyor Equipment

Abstract

To provide a conveyor apparatus capable of inhibiting generation of unintended continuous brake load.SOLUTION: A conveyor apparatus is driven by power supplied from a power section including a motor 21 and a brake section 23. The brake section releases brake load by energizing and produces normal engagement brake applied with brake load by stopping energization. The brake load is released by applying a prescribed voltage to the brake section 23 when starting the conveyor apparatus, subsequently, the voltage applied to the brake section 23 is decreased to maintain a released brake state. During driving of the conveyor apparatus, a voltage applied to the brake section 23 temporarily is increased at a prescribed interval.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a conveyor device such as a belt conveyor or a roller conveyor. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conveyor devices are used to transport goods on product assembly lines and at collection points for home delivery services. Examples of such conveyor devices include belt conveyors and roller conveyors. Meanwhile, as a power source for a conveyor device, a motor-incorporated roller in which a motor and a reducer are incorporated within a cylindrical roller body is known. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses such a motorized roller and a roller conveyor (transport device) formed using the motorized roller.

[0003] In addition, such conveyor devices may be provided with a brake mechanism to prevent unintended movement or acceleration of the transported object. One such mechanism is a brake roller, which mechanically presses a brake member against the surface of the roller body to generate frictional force to obtain braking force. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2004-107019 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The inventors came up with the idea of ​​providing a constantly engaged brake that releases the brake load by applying voltage to the motor that is the power source of the conveyor device. That is, they came up with the idea of ​​releasing the brake load at the time of start-up, and then maintaining the released brake load while the conveyor device transports the transported objects. They then came up with the idea of ​​stopping the application of voltage and applying the brake load when braking is required for the conveyor device.

[0006] Furthermore, by lowering the voltage required to maintain the brake load in the released state compared to when the brake load is released, the power required to operate the conveyor device can be reduced, thereby reducing the cost of operating the conveyor device.

[0007] However, when such a conveyor device was actually prototyped, it was found that the brakes were applied in situations where they were not actually required. After detailed investigation by the inventors, it was found that such situations were caused by unintended disturbances in the applied voltage (unintended momentary voltage drops).

[0008] In other words, if an unintended voltage drop occurs and the brakes are applied, the brake load cannot be released when the voltage returns to the original level, and the brakes continue to be applied. In other words, even if the voltage returns to the original level and a voltage is applied to maintain the released state, the brake load does not go into a released state, and the brakes continue to be applied.

[0009] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to provide a conveyor device capable of preventing the occurrence of unintended continuous brake load. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] One aspect of the present invention for solving the above problem is a conveyor device driven by power supplied from a power unit, the power unit having a motor and a brake unit, the brake unit being a constantly engaged brake in which a brake load is released by energizing the brake unit and a brake load is applied by stopping energization, when the conveyor device is started, a predetermined voltage is applied to the brake unit to release the brake load, and thereafter the voltage applied to the brake unit is reduced to maintain the brake load released state, and an operation of temporarily increasing the voltage applied to the brake unit is performed at predetermined intervals while the conveyor device is being driven. and, on the condition that the voltage applied to the brake unit has fluctuated, an operation is performed to increase the voltage applied to the brake unit so that the voltage applied to the brake unit reaches a target voltage that is a voltage capable of releasing the brake load. The present invention relates to a conveyor device.

[0011] According to the conveyor device of this aspect, even if an unintended voltage drop occurs and the brakes are applied, the brake load is released when the voltage applied to the brake section increases, and the released state is maintained thereafter. In other words, even if an unintended brake load occurs, it can be quickly restored. In addition, since the voltage increases at a predetermined interval, the operating cost can be reduced compared to a configuration in which a high voltage is continuously applied.

[0012] In the above aspect, when the voltage applied to the brake unit fluctuates during operation of the conveyor device, an operation of increasing the voltage applied to the brake unit is performed. do.

[0013] This advantageous feature allows for faster recovery in the event of unintended braking loads.

[0014] In the above-described aspect, the brake unit includes a pressing member, a pressed member that rotates together with the rotation of the output shaft of the motor, an attracting member, and a biasing member that constantly biases the pressing member toward the pressed member, and a brake load is applied when the pressing member is pressed against the pressed member by the biasing member, and the attracting member moves the pressing member in a direction away from the pressed member against the biasing force of the biasing member, and it is preferable that a stronger force against the biasing force is applied to the pressing member in response to an increase in the applied voltage.

[0015] According to this preferable aspect, the structure can be simplified, and the brake load can be controlled with an inexpensive configuration.

[0016] In the above-mentioned preferred aspect, it is more preferable that the brake portion has a contact member, and when the pressing member is pressed against the pressed member, the pressed member is clamped between the pressing member and the contact member, and the rotation of the pressed member is stopped.

[0017] According to this more preferable aspect, it is possible to prevent unintended displacement of the pressed member, and it is possible to exert a high braking force when applying the brakes.

[0018] In the above-mentioned preferred aspect, it is more preferable that the pressed member is a member whose main raw material is resin.

[0019] The above-mentioned aspect prevents unintentional continuous application of the brake while the motor is running, so that even if a pressed member made primarily of resin is used, excessive wear of the pressed member can be suppressed.

[0020] In the above aspect, it is preferable that the power unit is a roller with a built-in motor, and that the motor and the brake unit are built into the roller body, and the rotational force of the motor is transmitted to the roller body to rotate the roller body. Effect of the Invention

[0021] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of unintended continuous brake load. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] 1 is a plan view showing a conveyor device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the motor-incorporating roller of FIG. 1, showing a state in which no brake load is generated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0023] Hereinafter, a conveyor device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to these examples.

[0024] 1, the conveyor device 1 includes a control device (not shown) and a conveyor 2. The control device controls various operations performed by the conveyor 2. The conveyor 2 is a conveying device that constitutes a conveying section. The conveyor 2 of this embodiment is a roller conveyor having a plurality of transport rollers 10 arranged in parallel with a gap between them. One of the transport rollers 10 is a motor-incorporated roller 15 (power unit), and the other transport rollers 10 are freely rotating driven rollers 16. In the conveyor 2, adjacent transport rollers 10 are wound around each other with a transmission belt. Therefore, when the motor-incorporated roller 15 rotates, the rotational driving force is transmitted to the driven roller 16, and all the transport rollers 10 belonging to the conveyor 2 rotate.

[0025] 2, the motorized roller 15 has a motor 21, a reducer 22, a brake mechanism 23 (brake section), a circuit board (not shown), and the like built into a roller body 20. Specifically, the motor 21, the reducer 22, and the brake mechanism 23 are disposed inside an inner cylinder member 24 disposed inside the roller body 20.

[0026] The roller body 20 is a metallic cylinder with both ends open. Both ends are closed by closing members 30, 31. Fixed shafts 32, 33 protrude in the axial direction from both ends of the roller body 20. The fixed shafts 32, 33 are rotatably attached to the closing members 30, 31 via bearings, respectively, and are rotatable relative to the closing members 30, 31.

[0027] The motor 21 has a motor body 35 composed of a coil or the like that serves as a stator, and a rotating shaft 36 (output shaft) that is integrated with a rotor. The rotating shaft 36 has a portion (hereinafter also referred to as a first shaft 36a) that protrudes from one side of the pair of ends of the motor body 35, and a portion (hereinafter also referred to as a second shaft 36b) that protrudes from the other side. That is, the first shaft 36a and the second shaft 36b both rotate together with the rotor, and when one rotates, the other also rotates at the same speed, and when one stops rotating, the other also stops rotating.

[0028] The reducer 22, like known ones, reduces the rotational force of the motor 21 and has an internal planetary gear train, with a structure in which each component, such as gears, shafts, and bearings, come into contact with each other and move relative to each other. The reducer 22 has a motor shaft attachment portion 22a and an output shaft portion 22b, and a first shaft portion 36a of the motor 21 is connected to the motor shaft attachment portion 22a. In other words, when the motor 21 is driven, the first shaft portion 36a (rotating shaft portion 36) rotates, and the rotation speed of the rotating shaft portion 36 is reduced by the reducer 22 and transmitted to the output shaft portion 22b.

[0029] Here, the motor-incorporated roller 15 has a connecting member 40 fixed to the roller body 20, and is structured so that the rotation of the output shaft 22b of the reducer 22 is received by the connecting member 40. In other words, the rotation of the output shaft 22b is transmitted to the roller body 20 via the connecting member 40. As described above, the motor-incorporating roller 15 is structured so that when the motor 21 is driven with the two fixed shafts 32, 33 fixed to a conveyor frame or the like, the roller body 20 rotates on its axis.

[0030] The brake mechanism 23 has a first disk member 45 (pressed member), a coil member 46 (pushing member), a pressing plate portion 47 (pressing member), a coil spring 48 (urging member), and a second disk member 49 (contact member).

[0031] The first disk member 45 is an annular plate-shaped member whose main material is resin, and in this embodiment, the main material is synthetic resin (PPS resin). The first disk member 45 is attached to the second shaft portion 36b via an attachment member (not shown). Specifically, the first disk member 45 is attached so as to surround a part of the second shaft portion 36b in the circumferential direction, with the thickness direction being the same as the longitudinal direction (axial direction) of the second shaft portion 36b. In other words, the first disk member 45 is attached to the second shaft portion 36b in a flange-like shape. Moreover, the first disk member 45 is made of a non-magnetic material. The term "non-magnetic material" used here refers to a material that is not attracted to a magnet.

[0032] The coil member 46 has a wound portion formed by winding a conductor wire into a cylindrical shape, and functions as an electromagnet when a current flows through the conductor wire.

[0033] The pressure plate portion 47 is a thin, disk-shaped metal member. In this embodiment, the pressure plate portion 47 is made of a ferromagnetic material made of electrolytic zinc-plated steel plate. The term "ferromagnetic material" used here refers to a material that is attracted to a magnet.

[0034] The coil spring 48 is a so-called helical spring, and is disposed so that one end side in the longitudinal direction is in contact with the pressing plate portion 47. The coil spring 48 constantly biases the pressing plate portion 47 in a direction away from the coil member 46 (a direction toward the motor main body portion 35).

[0035] The second disk member 49 is a thin, annular metal member, and is fixed to the inner cylinder member 24 via a mounting member. The second disk member 49 is mounted so as not to rotate in association with the rotation of the second shaft portion 36b. Moreover, the second disk member 49 of this embodiment is made of a non-magnetic material whose main raw material is stainless steel. The term "non-magnetic material" used here refers to a material that is not attracted to a magnet.

[0036] The first disk member 45, the pressing plate portion 47, and the second disk member 49 are all arranged so that their thickness directions are the same. The first disk member 45 is a member formed to be thicker than both the pressing plate portion 47 and the second disk member 49. The pressing plate portion 47 and the second disk member 49 are located on either side of the first disk member 45, and the pressing plate portion 47 is located closer to the coil member 46 than the first disk member 45.

[0037] The brake mechanism 23 forms a normally engaged brake in which a brake load is released when a voltage is applied and a current flows through the conductor of the coil member 46 . That is, when no voltage is applied, the pressing plate portion 47 is pressed by the coil spring 48, and the pressing plate portion 47 is pressed against one main surface of the first disk member 45. As a result, the first disk member 45 is tightly sandwiched between the pressing plate portion 47 and the second disk member 49, and a braking load is applied. In contrast, when a voltage is applied, the pressing plate portion 47 is attracted to the coil member 46 by the magnetic force of the coil member 46. As a result, the pressing plate portion 47 moves away from the first disk member 45, and the brake load is released.

[0038] The conveyor device 1 of this embodiment is capable of two operations: a load release operation that changes a braking load state to a braking load-free state (brake load release state), and a release maintenance operation that maintains the braking load-free state.

[0039] When the conveyor device 1 of this embodiment is started, it performs a load releasing operation to separate the pressure plate portion 47 from the first disk member 45. Then, after that, it performs a release maintaining operation until it performs an operation to generate a brake load or until it stops operating the conveyor device 1.

[0040] Here, the load releasing operation is an operation in which a predetermined voltage (a voltage of 24 V in this embodiment) is applied and the pressing plate portion 47 is separated from the first disk member 45 by the magnetic force of the coil member 46.

[0041] In contrast to this, in the release maintaining operation, an operation of increasing the applied voltage (increasing the current flowing through the coil member 46) is executed at predetermined intervals. That is, in the release maintaining operation, a first state in which a relatively low voltage (a voltage of 12 V in this embodiment) is applied and a second state in which a voltage higher than that of the first state is applied are switched. In this embodiment, the voltage applied in the second state and the voltage applied when performing the load releasing operation are the same voltage value (a voltage of 24 V). In other words, the voltage applied in the first state is lower than the voltage applied when performing the load releasing operation.

[0042] For this reason, even if an unintended instantaneous voltage drop occurs during the execution of the release maintaining operation, causing a temporary unintended brake load, when the voltage drop is subsequently recovered, the first state will be changed to the second state, resulting in a transition to a state in which no brake load is applied. This prevents the unintended brake load from continuing to be generated, and can suppress the occurrence of problems resulting from this, such as the first disk member 45 being worn more than necessary.

[0043] The interval when the operation of increasing the voltage applied in the release maintaining operation is performed may be constant or may be indefinite. In other words, the interval from the start of the release maintaining operation to the first operation of increasing the voltage and the interval from the first operation of increasing the voltage to the second operation of increasing the voltage may be the same or different. The same applies to the third and subsequent operations. For example, the voltage may be increased at intervals of every tenth of a second, every few seconds, or every few minutes, or the operation of increasing the voltage may be executed every 0.5 seconds. In contrast, the interval from the start of execution of the release maintaining operation to the execution of the first operation of increasing the voltage may be 1 second, and the interval from the execution of the first operation of increasing the voltage to the execution of the second operation of increasing the voltage may be 2 seconds.

[0044] In this embodiment, the voltage to be applied is increased at regular intervals. In addition, in this embodiment, the power supply voltage applied to the coil member 46 is set to 24 V, and the voltage duty ratio is controlled to be variable (the duty ratio is set to 50 percent), thereby controlling the voltage (average voltage) applied to the coil member 46 to be 12 V. That is, when switching from the load releasing operation to the release maintaining operation, or when switching between the first state and the second state in the release maintaining operation, control is performed to vary the duty ratio.

[0045] In other words, when the motor 21 is driven, 24 V is applied to the brake mechanism 23 (coil member 46) and the brake load is released (a load release operation is executed). Then, after a predetermined time, the voltage is reduced, and 24 V is applied to the brake mechanism 23 at regular intervals after the voltage reduction (a release maintenance operation is executed). This operation of applying 24 V to the brake mechanism 23 at regular intervals is executed until a stop signal for the motor 21 is input.

[0046] Here, in the above-mentioned release maintaining operation, an operation (hereinafter also referred to as a first operation) is executed to increase the voltage applied to the brake mechanism portion 23 at regular intervals. In addition, in the release maintaining operation of this embodiment, in addition to the above-mentioned first operation, the following second operation is executed in parallel. The second operation is an operation in which a detection device is provided for detecting the voltage applied to the coil member 46, and the voltage applied to the coil member 46 is increased on the condition that the applied voltage has changed.

[0047] More specifically, a sensor member is provided that detects the power supply voltage (voltage when the duty ratio is 100%) applied to the coil member 46, and an operation of acquiring the power supply voltage is performed while the release maintaining operation is being performed. Then, when a fluctuation in the power supply voltage is detected, an operation of increasing the voltage applied to the coil member 46 is performed. This operation of increasing the voltage is an operation of varying the duty ratio of the voltage applied to the coil member 46 so that the voltage applied to the coil member 46 becomes a predetermined target voltage (24 V in this embodiment). In addition, this target voltage need only be a voltage value that can transition from a brake load state to a brake unloaded state, and does not necessarily have to be the same voltage as the power supply voltage (the voltage at which the duty ratio is 100 percent). That is, the second operation is an operation of constantly acquiring the power supply voltage, and, on condition that the power supply voltage has fluctuated, conducting 24V current.

[0048] By executing this second operation in parallel, even if an unintended momentary voltage drop occurs when the vehicle is in the first state described above, it is possible to quickly transition to a state in which the brake load is released before switching to the second state described above.

[0049] In the above embodiment, the conveyor 2 is a roller conveyor, but the present invention is not limited to this, and other types of conveyors such as belt conveyors may be used. The conveyor may be installed so that the conveying surface is parallel to the horizontal plane, or may be installed so that the conveying surface is inclined. For example, the conveyor may be installed so that the conveying surface slopes downward as it moves downstream in the conveying direction, or may be installed so that the conveying surface slopes upward as it moves downstream in the conveying direction.

[0050] In the above embodiment, the power unit (power source) of the conveyor 2 is a roller with a built-in motor, but the present invention is not limited to this. The power unit of the conveyor 2 is not limited to being built into a roller with a built-in motor, and may be a motor device equipped with the above-mentioned brake mechanism unit 23. For example, in a roller conveyor configured by arranging driven rollers 16, the output shaft of a motor device arranged outside the roller conveyor and one driven roller 16 may be linked by a belt to transmit the rotational driving force of the motor to the driven roller 16.

[0051] The conveyor device 1 described above may be one that adjusts the conveying speed with an electric brake from when the power is turned on to start operation until the power is turned off to end operation. That is, when the brake load by the brake mechanism unit 23 is released at the start of operation, a state in which the brake load by the brake mechanism unit 23 is not applied is maintained while the conveyor device is operating. Then, the brake load may be generated on the condition that the operation is ended and no voltage is applied to the motor 21 and the brake mechanism unit 23. In other words, the brake mechanism unit 23 may be provided separately from the electric brake used to adjust the motor speed, or may not be used as a brake to adjust the conveying speed, but may apply a braking load to the motor 21 when the conveyor device 1 is not operating. The electric brake may be an electric brake using regenerative braking (regenerative brake), or an electric brake that applies a field current in a direction that attracts the permanent magnet of the rotor and the stator (DC brake). Alternatively, the electric brake may be an electric brake that applies a field current so that the rotor rotates in the opposite direction to the direction of rotation at the time of output. Alternatively, the brake may be a servo motor brake (servo lock). [Explanation of symbols]

[0052] 1 Conveyor equipment 15 Motor-equipped roller (power unit) 21 Motor 23 Brake mechanism section (brake section) 36 Rotating shaft (output shaft) 45 First disk member (pressed member) 46 Coil member (drawing member) 47 Pressing plate part (pressing member) 48 Coil spring (biasing member) 49 Second disk member (contact member)

Claims

1. A conveyor device driven by power supplied from a power unit, The power unit has a motor and a brake unit, the brake unit is a constantly engaged brake in which a brake load is released by energizing the brake unit and a brake load is applied by stopping energization of the brake unit, When starting the conveyor device, a predetermined voltage is applied to the brake unit to release the brake load; Thereafter, the voltage applied to the brake unit is reduced to maintain the brake load released state, a brake unit that temporarily increases the voltage applied to the brake unit at predetermined intervals while the conveyor unit is operating, and, on condition that the voltage applied to the brake unit has fluctuated, increases the voltage applied to the brake unit so that the voltage applied to the brake unit reaches a target voltage that can release the brake load.

2. the brake unit includes a pressing member, a pressed member that rotates together with the rotation of the output shaft of the motor, a pulling member, and a biasing member that constantly biases the pressing member toward the pressed member, a brake load is applied by the pressing member being pressed against the pressed member by the biasing member, 2. The conveyor device according to claim 1, wherein the pulling member moves the pressing member in a direction away from the pressed member against the biasing force of the biasing member, and applies a stronger force to the pressing member against the biasing force in response to an increase in the applied voltage.

3. The brake portion has a contact member, 3. The conveyor device according to claim 2, wherein the pressing member is pressed against the pressed member, so that the pressed member is sandwiched between the pressing member and the abutment member, and rotation of the pressed member is stopped.

4. 4. The conveyor device according to claim 2, wherein the pressed member is made mainly of resin.

5. the power unit is a roller incorporating a motor, 5. The conveyor device according to claim 1, wherein the motor-integrated roller has the motor and the brake unit built into the roller body, and the rotational force of the motor is transmitted to the roller body to rotate the roller body.

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