Combination Weighing Device

Abstract

To improve weighing accuracy while minimizing cracking and chipping of an article.SOLUTION: According to an embodiment, in a combination weighing device 1 configured to perform combination weighing of at least two different articles: weighing hoppers 5 and booster hoppers 6 are divided into at least two groups on the basis of types of articles; a control part 11 sets the respective groups to either a first mode or a second mode; in a group that is set into the first mode, articles staying in the weighing hoppers 5 are discharged into a reception part 9 through the booster hoppers 6, and in a group that is set into the second mode, articles staying in the weighing hoppers 5 are discharged into either the booster hoppers 6 or the reception part 9.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a first type of combination weighing device is known that is configured to discharge articles retained in a weighing hopper into either a booster hopper or a discharge chute (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Also, a second type of combination weighing device is known which is configured to discharge articles retained in a weighing hopper into a discharge chute via a booster hopper. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-77075 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the first type of combination weighing device described above has a problem in that there is a large drop when articles are discharged from the weighing hoppers to the discharge chute, which makes it highly likely that articles will break or chip.

[0006] In addition, in the second type of combination weighing device described above, the drop when items are discharged from the weighing hopper to the booster hopper is small, so there is a low possibility of items being cracked or chipped, but there is a problem in that the number of combinations of hoppers discharging items is reduced, resulting in lower weighing accuracy.

[0007] Therefore, the present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and has an object to provide a combination weighing device that can improve weighing accuracy while minimizing breakage and chipping of articles. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A combination weighing device according to one embodiment is a combination weighing device that performs combination weighing of at least two different items, and includes a plurality of weighing hoppers that temporarily retain the items and obtain weighing values ​​of the retained items, and then discharge the items downstream; a plurality of booster hoppers that are disposed downstream of the weighing hoppers and temporarily retain the items discharged from the weighing hoppers, and then discharge the items downstream; a receiving unit that receives the items discharged from the weighing hoppers or the booster hoppers; and a control unit which discharges the items from the booster hopper, wherein the weighing hoppers and the booster hoppers are divided into at least two groups based on the type of the items, and the control unit sets each of the groups to either a first mode or a second mode, and in the group set to the first mode, the items retained in the weighing hoppers are discharged to the receiving section via the booster hopper, and in the group set to the second mode, the items retained in the weighing hopper are discharged to either the booster hopper or the receiving section. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a combination weighing device that can improve weighing accuracy while minimizing cracking and chipping of articles. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a combination weighing device 1 according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a display on the display unit 12 of the combination weighing device 1 according to one embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a method for discharging articles in a group set in the first mode in the combination weighing device 1 according to one embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a method for discharging articles in a group set in the second mode in the combination weighing device 1 according to one embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a combination weighing device 1 according to the second modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the drawings, the same or similar parts are given the same or similar reference numerals. However, it should be noted that the drawings are schematic and the ratios of the dimensions are different from the actual ones. Therefore, the specific dimensions should be determined with reference to the following description. In addition, the drawings may include parts with different dimensional relationships and ratios. In this specification and the drawings, elements having substantially the same functions and configurations are given the same reference numerals to avoid repeated explanations, and elements not directly related to the present invention are not illustrated.

[0012] (First embodiment) A combination weighing device 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to Figures 1 to 4. The combination weighing device 1 according to this embodiment mixes and combines and weighs at least two different articles.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, the combination weighing device 1 of this embodiment has a dispersion feeder (not shown), a plurality of radial feeders 3, a plurality of pool hoppers 4, a plurality of weighing hoppers 5, a plurality of booster hoppers 6, a plurality of discharge chutes 9, a control unit 11, and a display unit 12.

[0014] The dispersion feeder is a flat member. Articles are supplied to the dispersion feeder from the outside, i.e., from a supply conveyor (not shown) provided above the dispersion feeder. The dispersion feeder is vibrated by an electromagnet (not shown) provided below the dispersion feeder. The dispersion feeder transports the articles supplied to the conveying surface in the direction of the radial feeder 3 and supplies them to the radial feeder 3.

[0015] Each radial feeder 3 is a sheet metal member formed by bending a stainless steel plate. Each radial feeder 3 is arranged linearly along the end of the article conveying portion of the dispersion feeder. Specifically, as shown in Figure 1, each radial feeder 3 is arranged in parallel in the horizontal direction so that their conveying surfaces are parallel to each other.

[0016] Each radial feeder 3 vibrates the conveying surface by an electromagnet (not shown) provided at the bottom of the radial feeder 3. Each radial feeder 3 conveys articles outward by the vibration of the conveying surface. The radial feeder 3 supplies the articles to be conveyed to the weighing hopper 5.

[0017] Each pool hopper 4 temporarily accumulates the articles supplied from each radial feeder 3, and then transfers the articles to a weighing hopper 5 disposed below each pool hopper 4.

[0018] Each weighing hopper 5 temporarily retains the articles delivered from each pool hopper 4, and after obtaining the weight of the retained articles, discharges the articles downstream (each booster hopper 6 or discharge chute 9). Specifically, the weighing hopper 5 has a gate that opens exclusively from both sides, and discharges articles into the booster hopper 6 by opening one gate, and into the discharge chute 9 by opening the other gate.

[0019] Specifically, the weighing hopper 5 exclusively opens both gates, thereby discharging the weighed articles in either the first direction FD or the second direction SD, as shown in FIG.

[0020] Each booster hopper 6 is disposed downstream of each weighing hopper 5, and temporarily retains articles discharged from each weighing hopper, and then discharges the articles downstream (receiving section).

[0021] Each booster hopper 6 acquires the weighing value acquired by the weighing hopper 5 at the timing when the weighing hopper 5 disposed correspondingly upstream discharges articles. In other words, the weighing value acquired by the weighing hopper 5 shifts with respect to the booster hopper 6 as the articles are discharged. This makes it possible to recognize the weighing value of the articles remaining in the booster hopper 6.

[0022] In this embodiment, a case where the discharge chute 9 is used as the receiving part is exemplified, but the present invention is not limited to this case. Specifically, a conveyor belt may be disposed instead of the discharge chute 9. In this case, when the booster hopper 6 discharges the accumulated articles, the booster hopper 6 drops the articles directly onto the conveyor belt. In this case, the receiving part is the conveyor belt.

[0023] Each booster hopper 6 may have a weighing sensor and may be configured to reacquire the weight value of the articles remaining in each booster hopper 6.

[0024] The discharge chute 9 receives the articles discharged from the weighing hopper 5 or the booster hopper 6, and slides them down to an article processing device arranged downstream. This article processing device may be any device that performs a predetermined process on the articles, such as a vertical packaging machine that individually packages the articles that have been slid down, or a conveyor belt.

[0025] The control unit 11 performs combination weighing based on the weighed values ​​acquired by each weighing hopper 5 and the weighed value shifted to the booster hopper 6, and discharges the target articles from the weighing hopper 5 or the booster hopper 6.

[0026] In the combination weighing device 1 according to this embodiment, the weighing hoppers 5 and the booster hoppers 6 are divided into at least two groups based on the type of articles to be subjected to combination weighing. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 1, when the radial feeder 3, the pool hopper 4, the weighing hopper 5, and the booster hopper 6 arranged in a corresponding manner in the vertical direction are grouped together as one set, the combination weighing device 1 virtually sets a set of multiple such sets as a group. In the example of Fig. 1, three sets are set as group A, and four sets are set as group B.

[0027] Here, the control unit 11 sets each of the above-mentioned groups to either the first mode or the second mode.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 2, the display unit 12 displays whether the first mode or the second mode is set for each of the above-mentioned groups.

[0029] In the example of Figure 2, the display unit 12 displays that weigh hoppers #1 to #3 and booster hoppers #1 to #3 belong to group A, weigh hoppers #4 to #7 and booster hoppers #4 to #7 belong to group B, group A is set to the first mode, and group B is set to the second mode.

[0030] Here, the display unit 12 may be a display of the operation unit of the combination weighing device 1.

[0031] The user can set each of the above-mentioned groups to either the first mode or the second mode via the display unit 12. For example, the user can perform such setting by operating the operation unit while looking at the display of the operation unit.

[0032] 3, in the case of a group set to the first mode, the control unit 11 discharges articles retained in each weighing hopper 5 to the discharge chute 9 via the booster hopper 6. In this case, the weighing hopper 5 always discharges articles to the booster hopper 6.

[0033] Specifically, when items are stored in both the weighing hopper 5 and the booster hopper 6 at the time of performing combined weighing, the control unit 11 uses the weighing value of the items stored in the booster hopper 6, or the sum of the weighing values ​​of the items in the weighing hopper 5 and the booster hopper 6, for combined weighing.

[0034] Here, when both the weighing hopper 5 and the booster hopper 6 are selected for combination weighing, the control unit 11 controls the gate opening timing of the weighing hopper 5 and the booster hopper 6 so that, during the repeated combination weighing weighing cycle, the items remaining in the weighing hopper 5 are discharged to the booster hopper 6 to form a mass of items (one group of items) in the booster hopper 6, and then the items are discharged from the booster hopper 6.

[0035] As described above, by forming a lump of articles (one group of articles) in the booster hopper 6, it is possible to prevent the articles discharged from the weighing hopper 5 from being directly discharged to the discharge chute 9 via the booster hopper 6. As a result, it is possible to reduce the possibility of cracking or chipping.

[0036] In the above, a weighing cycle refers to a series of processes starting from the input of an interlocking signal regarding item discharge sent from an item processing device located downstream to the combination weighing device 1, followed by combination weighing, discharging the items, and supplying the items in preparation for the next weighing cycle.

[0037] Furthermore, when articles are retained in the weighing hoppers 5 but not in the booster hopper 6 at the timing of combination weighing, the control unit 11 uses the weighing value of the articles retained in the weighing hoppers 5 for combination weighing. When the weighing hopper 5 is selected for combination weighing, the control unit 11 controls the gate opening timing of the weighing hoppers 5 and the booster hopper 6 so that the articles retained in the weighing hopper 5 are discharged to the booster hopper 6 during the repeated weighing cycles of combination weighing, and the articles are temporarily retained in the booster hopper 6, and then the articles are discharged from the booster hopper 6.

[0038] According to this configuration, the drop when articles are discharged from each weighing hopper 5 to the discharge chute 9 (or the conveyor belt) can be reduced, and the possibility of articles being broken or chipped can be reduced.

[0039] Therefore, it is preferable to set the group to which the weighing hoppers 5 and the booster hoppers 6 that combine and weigh fragile articles belong to the first mode.

[0040] That is, in the group set to the first mode (group A in Figure 2), within one weighing cycle, items remaining in the weighing hopper 5 are discharged to the receiving section (discharge chute 9 or conveyor belt) via the booster hopper 6.

[0041] On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, in a group set to the second mode, the articles remaining in each weighing hopper 5 are discharged to either each booster hopper 6 or a discharge chute 9 (or a conveyor belt).

[0042] With this configuration, the drop when the items are discharged from the weighing hoppers 5 to the discharge chute 9 (or conveyor belt) is large, making it more likely that the items will break or chip; however, the number of combinations of hoppers discharging the items is increased, improving the weighing accuracy.

[0043] In other words, even if items are accumulated in both the weighing hopper 5 and the booster hopper 6 at the time of combination weighing, the control unit 11 can select and use the weighing value of the items accumulated only in the weighing hopper 5, the weighing value of the items accumulated only in the booster hopper 6, and the sum of the weighing values ​​of the items accumulated in each of the weighing hopper 5 and the booster hopper 6.

[0044] Therefore, it is preferable to set the group to which the weighing hoppers 5 and the booster hoppers 6 that combine and weigh articles that are not easily broken belong to the second mode.

[0045] The combination weighing device 1 according to this embodiment can improve weighing accuracy while minimizing cracking and chipping of articles.

[0046] For example, when weighing two types of items in combination, the group containing hoppers handling fragile items is set to the first mode, and the group containing hoppers handling items that are less affected by breaking is set to the second mode. As a result, it is possible to minimize cracking and chipping of fragile items, and improve the overall weighing accuracy by compensating for the poor weighing accuracy of the first mode with the good weighing accuracy of the second mode.

[0047] Here, when articles are discharged from each of the group set to the first mode (group A in Figure 2) and the group set to the second mode (group B in Figure 2) within one weighing cycle, each of the discharged articles is discharged to the receiving section (discharge chute 9 or conveying belt) as a single piece of article (one group of articles).

[0048] Items discharged from the group set in the first mode (group A in Figure 2) are temporarily retained in the booster hopper 6 and then discharged from the booster hopper 6 to the receiving section (discharge chute 9 or conveying belt) within one weighing cycle, and together with items discharged from the group set in the second mode (group B in Figure 2), form a mass of items (one group of items).

[0049] (Change example 1) The combination weighing device 1 according to Modification Example 1 will be described below, focusing on the differences from the combination weighing device 1 according to the above-described embodiment.

[0050] In modified example 1, in a group set to the second mode, when the control unit 11 selects an item that is retained in a weighing hopper 5 corresponding to a booster hopper 6 in which no item is retained as the above-mentioned target item as a result of combination weighing, the item retained in that weighing hopper 5 is discharged to the booster hopper 6 rather than to the receiving section (discharge chute 9 or conveying belt).

[0051] In addition, in modified example 1, in a group set to the second mode, when the control unit 11 simultaneously selects items held in a booster hopper 6 and items held in the weighing hopper 5 corresponding to the booster hopper 6 as the above-mentioned target items, the items held in the weighing hopper 5 are discharged into the booster hopper 6, and together with the items held in the booster hopper 6, they are discharged to the receiving section (discharge chute 9 or conveying belt) as a mass of items (one group of items).

[0052] Furthermore, in modified example 1, in a group set to the second mode, the control unit 11 determines whether the items held up in the weighing hopper 5 should be discharged to the booster hopper 6 or the receiving section (the discharge chute 9 or the conveying belt) based on the currently set processing volume (processing capacity) per unit time.

[0053] For example, in a group set to the second mode, when the processing volume of 60 bags / minute is currently set in the combination weighing device 1, the control unit 11 may decide to discharge items accumulated in the weighing hopper 5 to the booster hopper 6, even though the configuration allows such items to be discharged directly to the receiving section.

[0054] That is, in a group set to the second mode, the control unit 11 may decide to discharge items stored in the weighing hopper 5 to the booster hopper 6 when the currently set processing volume per unit time in the combination weighing device 1 is below a predetermined threshold value.

[0055] According to this configuration, when the processing amount per unit time (processing capacity) is slow, the articles can be discharged to the receiving section via the booster hopper 6, taking into consideration cracking and chipping of the articles.

[0056] (Change example 2) The combination weighing device 1 according to Modified Example 2 will be described below, focusing on the differences from the combination weighing device 1 according to the above-described embodiment.

[0057] In the second modified example, the weigh hoppers 5 and the booster hoppers 6 belonging to the group set to the first mode are hoppers that open on both sides. On the other hand, the weigh hoppers 5 and the booster hoppers 6 belonging to the group set to the first mode may be hoppers that open on both sides or hoppers that open on one side.

[0058] According to this configuration, hoppers of different structures can be mixed in the combination weighing device 1, and an appropriate hopper can be provided for each group.

[0059] In addition, in the second modification, as shown in FIG. 5, the discharge outlets 5a of the weighing hoppers 5 and the discharge outlets 6a of the booster hoppers 6 that belong to the group set to the first mode are aligned in a substantially vertical direction.

[0060] By adopting the above-mentioned configuration, adhesion to the gates of the weighing hopper 5 and the booster hopper 6 can be reduced.

[0061] Although the present invention has been described in detail using the above-mentioned embodiment, it is clear to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described in the present specification. The present invention can be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention defined by the description of the claims. Therefore, the description in this specification is intended to be illustrative and does not have any limiting meaning on the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0062] 1...Combination weighing device 3...Radiant feeder 4. Pool hopper 5…Weighing hopper 6…Booster Hopper 5a, 6a…Discharge port 9…Ejection chute 11...Control section 12...Display section

Claims

1. A combination weighing device that performs combination weighing of at least two different items, a plurality of weighing hoppers that temporarily retain the objects and discharge the objects downstream after acquiring weight values ​​of the retained objects; a plurality of booster hoppers disposed downstream of the weighing hoppers, which temporarily retain the articles discharged from the weighing hoppers and then discharge the articles downstream; A receiving section that receives the articles discharged from the weighing hopper or the booster hopper; a control unit that performs combination weighing based on the acquired weighing values ​​and discharges the target articles from the weighing hopper or the booster hopper, The weighing hoppers and the booster hoppers are divided into at least two groups based on the type of the articles, The control unit sets a group that handles fragile items to a first mode and a group that handles less fragile items to a second mode, In the group set to the first mode, the articles retained in the weighing hopper are discharged to the receiving section via the booster hopper, A combination weighing device, wherein in the group set to the second mode, the articles retained in the weighing hoppers are discharged to either the booster hopper or the receiving section.

2. 2. The combination weighing device according to claim 1, wherein in the group set to the first mode, the items retained in the weighing hoppers are discharged to the receiving section via the booster hopper within one weighing cycle.

3. The combination device of claim 1, wherein when an item is discharged from each of the group set to the first mode and the group set to the second mode within one weighing cycle, each of the discharged items is discharged to the receiving section as one group of items.

4. The combination weighing device described in claim 3, wherein the items discharged from the group set to the first mode temporarily remain in the booster hopper and are then discharged from the booster hopper to the receiving section within one weighing cycle, and together with the items discharged from the group set to the second mode, form one group of items.

5. a display unit that displays whether the first mode or the second mode is set for each of the groups, The combination weighing device according to claim 1 , wherein a user can set each of the groups to either the first mode or the second mode via the display unit.

6. The combination weighing device of claim 1, wherein in the group set to the second mode, when the control unit selects the item that is parked in the weighing hopper corresponding to the booster hopper in which the item is not parked as the target item, the item that is parked in the weighing hopper is discharged to the booster hopper.

7. The combination weighing device of claim 1, wherein in the group set to the second mode, when the control unit selects the items parked in the booster hopper and the items parked in the weighing hopper corresponding to the booster hopper as the target items simultaneously, the items parked in the weighing hopper are discharged to the booster hopper and, together with the items parked in the booster hopper, are discharged to the receiving unit as a single group of items.

8. 3. The combination weighing device according to claim 1, wherein in the group set to the second mode, the control unit determines whether the items remaining in the weighing hopper should be discharged to the booster hopper or to the receiving unit based on the currently set processing volume per unit time.

9. 2. The combination weighing device according to claim 1, wherein the weighing hoppers and the booster hoppers belonging to the group set to the first mode are hoppers that open both ways.

10. The combination weighing device according to claim 1 , wherein the discharge ports of the weighing hoppers and the booster hoppers belonging to the group set to the first mode are aligned in a substantially vertical direction.

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