Item transport device

Abstract

To provide an article conveying device capable of maintaining an enlarged conveying pitch.SOLUTION: Engagement portions 30 provided on an outer periphery of a wheel 22 are engaged with front and back of an article M from a side of the article M. A separating device 14 is arranged below a conveyor 12, and a pusher 23 is engaged with the article M conveyed on the conveyer 12 from behind in a conveying direction. An interval regulating device 18 is provided above the conveyor 12 on a downstream side of the separating device 14 in the conveying direction, and a locking member 26 is inserted between the articles M conveyed on the conveyer 12. With the engagement portion 30 of the wheel 22 being engaged with a front of the article M, the separating device 14 inserts the pusher 23 between the article M and the article M on the adjacent downstream side in the conveying direction, and the pusher 23 engages with the article M released from disengagement by the engagement portion 30 from behind in the conveying direction. The interval regulating device 18 inserts the locking member 26 between the article M with which the pusher 23 is engaged and the article M on an upstream side of the article M in the conveying direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an article transport device that increases the spacing between articles successively transported by a transport conveyor. [Background technology]

[0002] An article separation device is known that expands the gap between articles continuously conveyed on a conveyor to a certain size by the blades of a blade wheel arranged under the conveyor (see Patent Document 1). In the article separation device described in Patent Document 1, wheel bodies with different numbers of blades and rotating at different speeds are arranged under two conveyor belts running parallel to each other at a certain interval, and the blades of both wheel bodies are inserted between the articles synchronously through the gap between the conveyor belts, and then the blades of one wheel body hold down the leading edge of the rear article while the blades of the other wheel body push the trailing edge of the front article forward to move it forward, thereby expanding the gap between the articles (conveying pitch). The row of articles with the expanded conveying pitch is conveyed downstream on the conveyor belt, and the conveying pitch is fixed by inserting pressing members provided at a certain pitch on a conveyor chain arranged on the downstream side above the conveyor into the gap between the articles. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2000-062945 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the configuration of Patent Document 1, the article whose conveying pitch has been expanded by the wheel body is conveyed without its position or posture being restricted for a while. Therefore, if an external force such as friction acts on the article during this time, the position or posture of the article is disturbed, and problems such as the pressing member getting caught in the article occur. This problem becomes particularly noticeable at high conveying speeds, so the processing speed of the article conveying device is limited.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide an article transport device capable of maintaining an expanded transport pitch. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The first invention of the present invention is an article transport device that expands the space between articles continuously transported by a transport conveyor, and includes a wheel having a plurality of engagement portions that are equally spaced along the circumferential direction of the outer periphery and that engage with the front and rear of the articles from the side, a separation means that is provided below the transport conveyor and has a plurality of pushers attached to an endless transport body that engage with articles transported on the transport conveyor from the rear in the transport direction, and a pusher that is provided above the transport conveyor downstream in the transport direction of the separation means and that is inserted between the articles transported on the transport conveyor. and a gap defining means in which a plurality of locking members are attached to the endless conveying body and which can be inserted into the article, and the separating means inserts the pusher between the article and an article adjacent to the article on the downstream side in the conveying direction when the engaging portion of the wheel engages the article from the front, and engages the pusher with the article that has been released from the engagement by the engaging portion and moves it downstream in the conveying direction, forming a gap between the article with which the pusher is engaged and an article located upstream in the conveying direction of the article, and the gap defining means inserts the locking member into the gap.

[0007] The second invention of the present invention is an item transport device according to the first invention, characterized in that the pusher engages with the outer peripheral surface of the item to move the item in the transport direction, and the locking member is capable of engaging with a flange portion extending in the outer peripheral direction from the periphery of the item. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an article transport device capable of maintaining an expanded transport pitch. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1]1 is a side view showing a configuration of an article separation device in a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line III-III in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a partial side view showing the arrangement of an article transport apparatus according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a side view showing the configuration of an article separation device in a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0011] The article transport device 10 of this embodiment includes a transport conveyor 12, which includes a pair of endless top chains 12A that run parallel to each other at a specified interval. The two top chains 12A are driven integrally by a motor 12M, and articles M aligned in a line are placed on the transport surface of the top chain 12A and transported. Note that in this embodiment, the articles M are, for example, trapezoidal containers that are rectangular in plan view, and have a flange portion F that protrudes in the outer circumferential direction on the periphery of the upper opening. As an example, the articles M are filled with natto as the contents.

[0012] Arranged below the transport surface of the top chain 12A from the upstream side are an article separation device (separation means) 14 and an article accumulation device 16. Above the transport surface of the top chain 12A, an article interval regulation device (interval regulation means) 18 is arranged from directly above the article separation device 14 to the downstream side, and a transfer device 20 is arranged above the downstream side of the article accumulation device 16. Also, on the upstream side of the transport conveyor 12, at a position overlapping with the article separation device, a pair of wheels 22 that rotate around a vertical axis R are arranged on both sides of the top chain 12A (see Figure 2).

[0013] The article separation device 14 is equipped with a plurality of plate-shaped pushers 23 that engage with the article M from the rear in the conveying direction and push the article M forward. Each pusher 23 is disposed under the conveying surface of the top chain 12A and attached to an endless chain (endless conveying body) 24 that is wound around a sprocket 24A at a predetermined interval slightly wider than the length of the article M in the conveying direction. The pushers 23 extend outward relative to the track of the endless chain 24 and protrude onto the conveying surface from between the top chains 12A as the endless chain 24 travels. The pushers 23 that protrude onto the conveying surface travel along the conveying direction for a predetermined section and are then moved below the top chain 12A together with the endless chain 24. The endless chain 24 is driven by a motor 24M.

[0014] The article interval regulation device 18 is equipped with multiple plate-shaped locking members 26 that engage with the articles M to regulate the movement of the articles M in the conveying direction. Each locking member 26 is disposed above the conveying surface of the top chain 12A, and is attached to the endless chain 28 that is wound around the sprocket 28A at a predetermined interval that is slightly narrower than the interval at which the pushers 23 are attached to the endless chain 24. The locking members 26 extend outward relative to the track of the endless chain 28, and are inserted between the articles M conveyed on the top chain 12A as the endless chain 28 travels. The locking members 26 inserted between the articles M travel in the conveying direction while engaging with the front edge of each article M for a predetermined section, and are then removed upward together with the endless chain 28. The endless chain 28 is driven by a motor 28M.

[0015] 2, the outer periphery of the wheel 22 is provided with engaging portions 30 at equal intervals along the circumferential direction, which are inserted between the articles M from the sides of the articles M. The wheels 22 are rotated in opposite directions by the motor 22M to synchronously send out the articles M in the conveying direction. The intervals between the engaging portions 30 correspond to the size of the articles M, and the articles M are sent in the conveying direction with a pair of engaging portions 30 inserted in front and behind the articles M from the left and right.

[0016] 1 and 2, the articles M are supplied to the transport conveyor 12 in a line with the front and rear flange portions F in close contact with each other. On the left and right sides of the transport conveyor 12, side guides 32 for guiding the flange portions F of the articles M are arranged along the transport path as shown in FIG.

[0017] Thereafter, the engagement portions 30 of the wheels 22 are inserted from the left and right just below the front flange portion F of the article M, and the next engagement portions 30 of the wheels 22 are inserted from the left and right just below the rear flange portion F of the article M. While the article M is sandwiched between the front and rear engagement portions 30 of the left and right wheels 22 (with the engagement portions 30 engaged with the front and rear of the article), the pusher 23 of the article separation device 14 is inserted from below between the article M and the adjacent article M on the upstream side. The circumferential speed V of the wheels 22 H corresponds to the processing capacity of the article conveying device 10, and the peripheral speed V of the top chain 12A CV is set to a speed slower than (V CV >V H 2 are in contact with the engagement portion 30 located at the front in the conveying direction, and movement of the articles M toward the downstream in the conveying direction is restricted. Therefore, a pressing force acts between the articles M located upstream of the third article M from the upstream side in the conveying direction in FIG. 2.

[0018] On the other hand, the peripheral speed V of the pusher 23 (endless chain 24) a is the circumferential speed V of the top chain 12A. CV is set to a speed faster than (V a >V CV As a result, the pusher 23 catches up with the article M and comes into contact with the rear of the article M.

[0019] When the pusher 23 comes into contact with the article M and disengages the article M from the front engagement portion 30 of the wheel 22, the pusher 23 accelerates the article M downstream in the conveying direction, forming a gap between the article M on the upstream side that allows the locking member 26 of the article spacing regulation device 18 to be inserted. The locking member 26 of the article spacing regulation device 18 is then inserted between the article M and the adjacent article M on the downstream side.

[0020] Circumferential speed V of the engaging member 26 (endless chain 28) b is the peripheral speed V of the top chain 12A. CV Slightly slower than (V CV >V b ), if the article M does not slip on the top chain 12A due to friction between the article M and the side guide 32 caused by tilting the article M's posture, the front edge of the article M (front flange portion F) will come into contact with the locking member 26, and its movement will be restricted. If friction with the side guide 32 occurs and the article M slides significantly on the top chain 12A, the rear edge of the article M (rear flange portion F) will come into contact with the locking member 26 inserted between the article M and the adjacent article M on the upstream side. In other words, the front and rear positions of the article M in the conveying direction are restricted by the front and rear locking members 26, and the article M is conveyed on the top chain 12A while maintaining the expanded conveying pitch within a certain range.

[0021] Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in Fig. 1, and shows the arrangement of the top chain 12A, wheel 22, pusher 23, locking member 26, and side guide 32 at the position where article M is separated. Note that pusher 23 and locking member 26 are attached to each chain 24, 28 via stays 23A and 26A, respectively.

[0022] The article stacking device 16, located downstream of the transport conveyor 12, separates and stacks the articles M transported by the top chain 12A into groups of a predetermined number. The article stacking device 16 is equipped with an endless chain 36 on which multiple stoppers 34 are provided at predetermined intervals corresponding to the number of articles to be stacked. The stoppers 34 extend outward relative to the track of the endless chain 36, and protrude above the transport surface between the top chains 12A near the position where the locking members 26 are released from engagement with the articles M. The stoppers 34 protruding above the transport surface run in the transport direction until close to the downstream end of the top chain 12A, and are then moved below the top chain 12A together with the endless chain 36. The stoppers 34 (endless chain 36) are moved by a motor 36M at a peripheral speed V of the top chain 12A. CV A peripheral speed V is slower than S It is driven by (V CV >V S ).

[0023] In FIG. 1, the stoppers 34 are provided on the endless chain 36 at intervals that allow six articles M to be accumulated. That is, when the stopper 34 is inserted in front of the article M near the position where the engagement between the locking member 26 and the article M is released, the peripheral speed V of the stopper 34 S is the peripheral speed V CV Since the article M is slower than the first article M, it catches up with the stopper 34 and its leading edge is locked by the stopper 34, restricting its movement. After that, the articles M upstream of the article M catch up in sequence, and multiple articles M are stacked closely together with the article M at the front.

[0024] The next stopper 34 is inserted behind the sixth article M, i.e., in front of the seventh article M. As a result, six articles M are stacked closely together between the leading stopper 34 and the next stopper 34, and the leading edge of the downstream article M abuts against the rear surface of the next stopper 34, and the downstream articles M are stacked in sequence.

[0025] The six articles M accumulated in a state of being in close contact between the two stoppers 34 are then transferred to a downstream device (not shown) by a transfer device 20 arranged above the downstream side of the article accumulation device 16. The transfer device 20 is provided with suction heads 20A for suctioning the top surfaces (e.g., lids) of the accumulated articles M along the conveying direction of the top chain 12A, the number of which corresponds to the number of articles M to be accumulated. The suction heads 20A are made movable up and down by a head drive device 20B, and are also movable back and forth in the conveying direction of the top chain 12A and in a horizontal direction perpendicular to the conveying direction. That is, the suction heads 20A are lowered while following the movement of the articles M accumulated and conveyed on the top chain 12A, and are raised after holding the top surfaces of each article M. The suction heads 20A are then moved, for example, to a downstream device (not shown) arranged parallel to the article conveyor 12, and the articles M held by the suction heads 20A are transferred to the said device. The head driving device 20B is controlled in synchronization with the movement of the article stacking device 16.

[0026] As described above, according to the article handling device of this embodiment, each article whose conveying pitch has been expanded by the article separating device is conveyed at a constant speed by the engagement portion of the wheel or the pusher of the article separating device until its front-rear position in the conveying direction is restricted by the locking member of the article spacing regulation device. This prevents the articles from slowing down due to external forces such as friction, narrowing the intervals between the articles, and makes it possible to significantly increase the conveying speed of the articles without impeding the insertion of the locking member between the articles.

[0027] Next, the arrangement of an article transport apparatus in the second embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a partial side view showing the arrangement of an article transport apparatus in the second embodiment. Also, the same reference numbers are used for configurations similar to those in the first embodiment, and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0028] The article transport device 10 of the first embodiment is designed to be capable of suctioning the top surface (lid) of an article M, such as a container filled with contents and sealed. Therefore, the pusher 23 of the article separating device 14 enlarges the transport pitch between the articles M, and the locking member 26 of the article spacing regulation device 18 regulates the front-to-rear position in the transport direction, after which the articles are accumulated on the article transport conveyor 12 by the article accumulation device 16, and the accumulated articles M are held by the suction head 20A and transferred to a downstream device.

[0029] On the other hand, the article conveying device 40 of the second embodiment is assumed to be in a state before the contents are filled and the opening of the container or the like is sealed (supplying an empty container to a downstream device such as a filling machine or a sealing machine). In the article conveying device 40, as in the first embodiment, the conveying pitch of the articles M conveyed on a pair of top chains 42A of the conveying conveyor 42 is expanded by the pusher 23 of the article separating device 14 via the wheel 22, and the locking member 26 of the article interval regulation device 44 is inserted between the articles M whose conveying pitch has been expanded to maintain the article interval (conveying pitch). However, in the conveying device 40 of the second embodiment, a conveying conveyor 46 of a downstream device such as a filling machine is disposed on the downstream extension line of the conveying conveyor 42 at a height lower than that of the conveying conveyor 42, and articles M are directly supplied to the conveying conveyor 46 of a downstream device such as a sealing machine via a flange guide 48. That is, the stacking device 16 and the transfer device 20 of the first embodiment are not used.

[0030] 4, the length of the transport conveyor 42 of the second embodiment is shorter than that of the article transport conveyor 12 of the first embodiment, and the downstream end of the article transport conveyor 12 is located immediately downstream of the position where the locking member 26 of the article spacing regulation device 44 is inserted between the articles M. In addition, on the extension line of the downstream side of the transport conveyor 42, a transport conveyor 46 of a downstream device such as a filling machine is disposed at a height lower than the transport conveyor 42, as described above.

[0031] The article spacing regulation device 44 of the second embodiment extends from directly above the downstream part of the article separating device 14 to above the transport conveyor 46, and in this section, the locking member 26 moves horizontally along the article transport direction. In addition, from the position where the locking member 26 is inserted between the articles M to the upstream part of the transport conveyor 46, a flange guide 48 that supports the undersides of the flange portions F on both sides of the articles M is provided. In other words, the articles M, whose transport pitch is regulated by the locking member 26, have their flange portions F on both sides supported by the flange guides 42, and are pushed by the locking member 26 to move forward while sliding on the flange guides 42.

[0032] The downstream portion of the flange guide 48 is inclined toward the transport conveyor 46 of the downstream device, and when it reaches above the transport conveyor 46, the horizontally moving locking member 26 moves out from between the articles M, and the restriction of the articles M by the locking member 26 is released. The transport conveyor 46 is driven in synchronization with the endless chain 28 of the article spacing regulation device 44, and the transport conveyor 46 is provided with a retainer 46A that matches the dimensions of the articles M. The articles M that have been released from the restriction by the locking member 26 slide down the flange guide 48, are contained in the retainer 46A of the transport conveyor 46, and are transported to a downstream device such as a sealer. The spacing of the locking members 26 is set corresponding to the spacing of the retainers 46A.

[0033] As described above, the article transport device of the second embodiment also provides the same effects as the first embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] 10. Item transport device 12 Goods transport conveyor 12A Top Chain 14 Article separation device (separation means) 18 Item spacing regulation device (spacing regulation means) 22 Wheels 23 Pusha 24 Endless chain (endless conveyor) 26 Locking member 28 Endless chain (endless conveyor) 30 Engagement part

Claims

1. An article conveying device that expands a space between articles being continuously conveyed by a conveyor, comprising: a wheel having a plurality of engagement portions that are arranged at equal intervals along a circumferential direction of an outer periphery thereof and that engage with the front and rear of an article from the side; a separating means provided below the transport conveyor and including a plurality of pushers attached to an endless transport body for engaging with the articles transported on the transport conveyor from the rear in the transport direction; a gap defining means provided above the transport conveyor on the downstream side of the separating means in the transport direction, the gap defining means including a plurality of locking members attached to an endless transport body and inserted between the articles transported on the transport conveyor; the separating means inserts the pusher between the article and an article adjacent to the article on the downstream side in the conveying direction with the engagement portion of the wheel engaged with the article from the front, engages the pusher with the article released from engagement with the engagement portion and moves it downstream in the conveying direction, and forms a gap between the article engaged with the pusher and an article located upstream in the conveying direction of the article; The space defining means is configured to insert the locking member into the space. An article transport device comprising:

2. 2. The article transport device according to claim 1, wherein the pusher engages with an outer peripheral surface of the article to move the article in the transport direction, and the engaging member is engageable with a flange portion that protrudes in the outer peripheral direction from a peripheral edge of the article.

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