Bag-filling packaging device and bag-filling packaging method

Abstract

To solve the problem in which, in tendency control of a conventional bagging-packaging device, since weight is checked by a weight checker four to six steps after the filling, the control goes through a plurality of steps from the filling to the checking, and in which, since an underweight bag is discharged to the outside of the system and an object to be packaged is inputted in the bag again manually, it requires time and effort of an operator and work efficiency decreases.SOLUTION: A bagging-packaging device includes: a filling machine 30 for filling an object to be packaged in a bag; a measurement device 5 disposed at a post-process position of the filling machine 30, for measuring the weight of the filled bag; and a control device 4 for controlling the bagging-packaging device. The control device 4 controls in such a manner that, in the case where the weight of the bag filled by the filling machine 30 is smaller than a predetermined range, the filled bag is not discharged to the outside of a conveyance passage for filling and packaging, but it is returned to the conveyance passage and is filled with the object to be packaged of the weight in which the filled weight is subtracted from a target weight by the filling machine 30.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a bagging packaging apparatus and a bagging packaging method for continuously filling and packaging items to be packaged. [Background technology]

[0002] There are known bagging packaging devices and methods that continuously fill bags with a specified mass (weight) of packaged materials such as powder and granular materials. In such bagging packaging devices and methods, in order to fill bags with the exact weight of the packaged materials, when filling with an auger-type filling machine, the rotation speed of the auger (screw) is pulse-controlled by a servo motor, and the weight of the final package that has been filled and packaged is checked by a weight checker (a device for diagnosing weight, etc.).

[0003] Incidentally, when filling a bag, the filling amount (weight of the packaged items) may vary due to fluctuations in the bulk density of the packaged items, such as powdered or granular materials (for example, fluctuations in the bulk density of the packaged items due to changes in humidity and temperature when filling grains, which become powdered or granular materials). In order to obtain an accurate weight even in such cases, a control method (also called trend control) is generally used in which the pulse value of a servo motor is corrected to match the appropriate filling amount according to the weight detected by a weight checker (trend in weight fluctuation). Such a method is disclosed, for example, in Patent Document 1.

[0004] As described above, a weight checker or the like is used to check (diagnose) whether the weight is within the appropriate range, and if there is an error, the error is corrected by trend control. However, in a typical bagging and packaging device or method, after the filling process in which the bag is filled with the packaged material, there are multiple processes (generally about 4 to 6 processes) before the weighing process in which the packaged material is measured by a weight checker, such as a tapping process in which the packaged material in the bag is dropped to the bottom of the bag, a degassing process in which the air in the filled bag is degassed, a sealing process in which the mouth of the bag is sealed, a cooling process in which the sealed part of the mouth of the bag is cooled, and a conveying process in which the bag is conveyed out of the packaging device. Even if the filling amount of the auger-type filling machine is corrected by trend control, the packaged material passes through multiple processes before the correction, so if the weight is less than the preset range, an operator must manually refill the packaged material, and if the weight is more than the preset range, a correction work must be performed by manually removing the packaged material until the set weight is reached. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 57-60222 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In the conventional bagging packaging apparatus and method that controls the filling amount by trend control as described above, the packed items that exceed the set range slip through before the filling amount of the auger type filling machine is corrected, and the filling amount cannot be corrected in real time. Thus, the conventional bagging packaging apparatus and method have a problem that the filling amount of all packaged items cannot be corrected, and manual correction work is required.

[0007] Furthermore, with conventional bagging packaging devices and methods, workers had to manually fill bags with the items to be packaged, not only when the weight of the packaged items was too heavy but also when the weight was too light, which was inconvenient in terms of time and effort.

[0008] In view of the above problems, the present invention has an object to provide a bagging packaging device and a bagging packaging method that can adjust the filling amount of packaged items in real time and improve filling efficiency. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The bagging packaging apparatus of the present invention comprises a rotary bagging packaging machine, a weight checker that checks the weight of the bags filled and packaged by the bagging packaging machine and discharged by an output conveyor, and a control device that controls each component of the bagging packaging apparatus. In a rotary bag-filling packaging machine, a pair of clamp arms are supported on the periphery of a circular rotor, and a clamp is provided at the tip of each clamp arm to clamp both side edges of the bag. The circular rotor is provided with a bag supply section where empty bags are supplied by a bag supply device, a filling section where bags are filled with powder or granular material or other packaged material by a filling machine, a weighing section where a weighing device such as a load cell is provided and filled bags are weighed while being transferred between bags, an oversized bag discharge section where bags whose weight exceeds a set range are discharged from the conveying path of the circular rotor, a degassing section where air is removed from within the bags, a sealing section where the openings of the bags are sealed, and a cooling and unloading section where the sealed portions of the bags are cooled and the packed bags are unloaded from the conveying path of the circular rotor to the unloading conveyor. In the filling section, a filling machine is provided adjacent to the circular rotor, and the filling machine fills the bag with the packaged material using a filling auger pulse-controlled by a servo motor. In the weighing section, the bag filled with the packaged goods is temporarily transferred from the clamp to a load cell, the bag's weight is measured, and the measured value is output to the control device. The weighing result is also fed back to the filling machine by the control device. If the weight of the packaged item is greater than the set range, the clamp opens and the bag is discharged from the chute in the oversized bag discharge section and sent out of the system. Bags with a weight smaller than the set range will not have their mouths sealed in the sealing section, and will not be discharged from the cooling and discharging section to the outside of the system. Instead, they will travel again along the conveying path of the rotary bag filling and packaging machine, and after passing through the conveying path without undergoing the bag supplying operation or bag mouth opening operation in the bag supplying section and bag mouth opening section, they will be filled with the missing amount of packaged items in the filling section. Bags whose weight falls within the set range undergo the degassing operation in the degassing section, the sealing operation in the sealing section, and the cooling and discharge operation in the cooling and discharge section, and are then transported via a transport conveyor to the weight checker where the final weight is checked. The check result of the weight checker is sent to a control device for trend control, and the auger of the filling machine is pulse-controlled.

[0010] The bag-filling and packaging method is a bag-filling and packaging method for a bag-filling and packaging machine including a rotary bag-filling and packaging machine, a weight checker that checks the weight of the bag that is filled and packaged by the bag-filling and packaging machine and discharged by a discharge conveyor, and a control device that controls each component of the bag-filling and packaging machine, A rotary type bag filling packaging machine includes a bag supply section in which empty bags are supplied by a bag supply device, a filling section in which bags are filled with powder or granular material or other packaged material by a filling machine, a weighing section in which a weighing device such as a load cell is provided and filled bags are weighed while being transferred between bags, an oversized bag discharge section in which bags whose weight exceeds a set range are discharged from the conveying path of the circular rotor, a degassing section in which air is removed from within the bags, a sealing section in which the mouths of the bags are sealed, and a cooling and conveying section in which the sealed portions of the bags are cooled and the packed bags are conveyed from the conveying path to the discharge conveyor. The control device of the bag filling packaging device controls each component as follows. Bags with a packaged item weight larger than the set range are discharged from a chute installed in the oversized bag discharge section by opening the clamps of the rotary bag filling and packaging machine, and are sent out of the system. Bags with a weight smaller than the set range will not have their mouths sealed in the sealing section, and will not be discharged from the cooling and discharging section to the outside of the system. Instead, they will travel again along the conveying path of the rotary bag filling and packaging machine, and after passing through the conveying path without undergoing the bag supplying operation or bag mouth opening operation in the bag supplying section and bag mouth opening section, they will be filled with the missing amount of packaged items in the filling section. Bags whose weight falls within the set range undergo the degassing operation in the degassing section, the sealing operation in the sealing section, and the cooling and discharge operation in the cooling and discharge section, and are then transported via a transfer conveyor to the weight checker where the final weight is checked. The results of the weight checker's check are used for trend control and to pulse control the auger of the filling machine. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the bagging packaging device and bagging method of the present invention, the filling amount can be corrected in real time, and the filling weight can be well controlled. Also, since it is not necessary to manually re-package the packaged items into bags whose weight is smaller than the set range, it is possible to save time and labor and improve work efficiency compared to conventional bagging packaging devices and methods. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a plan view of a bagging packaging device according to the present invention; [Diagram 2] Front view of the bagging packaging device [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a simplified process (bag-packaging method) performed by a bag-packaging device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the bag-packaging device according to the embodiment of the present invention is a rotary bag-packaging machine 1 that continuously fills and packages articles to be packaged into bags in predetermined weights as described later. In addition to the rotary bag-packaging machine 1, this bag-packaging device is also provided with a weight checker (weight diagnosis device) 2 for checking the weight of the bags filled and packaged by the bag-packaging machine 1, a carry-out conveyor 3 for carrying out the bags filled and packaged by the bag-packaging machine 1 to the weight checker 2, and a control device 4 for controlling each component of this bag-packaging device.

[0014] In the rotary bag-packaging machine 1, eight sets of clamp arms 12, each set consisting of two, are pivotally supported on the periphery of a circular rotor 11, and clamps 13 for clamping both side edges of the bag 14 are provided at the tips of the respective clamp arms 12. Then, the rotational driving force of a drive motor (not shown) is transmitted to the central axis of the circular rotor 11 and the like via an intermittent rotation transmission mechanism (also not shown), whereby the circular rotor 11 intermittently rotates in the clockwise direction (arrow R1) at a pitch of 45°, which corresponds to the circumferential interval of the eight sets of clamp arms 12.

[0015] The circular rotor 11 has a bag supply section (1) where empty bags 14 are supplied by a bag supply device 15, a bag opening section (2) where a printing process of printing expiration dates and the like on the bags 14 and a bag opening process of the bags 14 are performed, a filling section (3) where a filling machine 30 fills the bags 14 with a packaged material such as powder or granular material, a weighing section (4) where a weighing device 5 such as a load cell is provided and the filled bags 14 are weighed while being transferred, and a weighing section (5) where a weight is measured within a set range (corresponding to an appropriate filling weight between a lower threshold and an upper threshold). The system includes an oversized bag discharge section (5) that discharges bags 14 with a weight larger than the set weight range from the conveying path of the circular rotor 11 (discharges them out of the system), a degassing section (6) that degass the air in the bags 14, a sealing section (7) that seals the openings of the bags 14, and a cooling and carrying-out section (8) that cools the sealed parts of the bags 14 and carries the packaged bags 14 out of the conveying path of the circular rotor 11 to the carry-out conveyor 3, and these sections (1) to (8) are used for filling, packaging, and other operations. Thus, the bags 14 supplied to the clamp arm 12 in the bag supply section (1) are suspended with both side edges of the bags clamped by the clamps 13, and are intermittently conveyed at 45° intervals along the circular orbital conveying path outside the circular rotor 11 toward the cooling and carrying-out section (8). In FIG. 1, each of these sections (1) to (8) is indicated by a number written in a circle.

[0016] On the other hand, the bag filling packaging device and bag filling packaging method according to the embodiment of the present invention are not provided with an undersized bag discharge section that discharges bags 14 whose weight is smaller than the set range from the conveying path (discharges them out of the system). That is, in the bag filling packaging device and bag filling packaging method according to the embodiment of the present invention, bags 14 whose weight is smaller than the set range (proper weight range) are not sealed at the mouth of the bag 14 in the sealing section (7), are not discharged out of the system from the cooling discharge section (8), and proceed again along the conveying path (conveying path of the rotary bag filling packaging machine 1), and simply pass through the conveying path without undergoing bag supplying operation and bag opening operation in the bag supply section (1) and bag opening section (2), and are then filled in the filling section (3) to make up for the shortage of the packaged items. Note that if the weight measured in the weighing section (4) is within the set range, the bag is discharged from the cooling discharge section (8) and conveyed to the weight checker 2 via the discharge conveyor 3.

[0017] The bag supplying device 15 arranged corresponding to the bag supplying section (1) may be of any type as long as it has a structure capable of supplying empty bags 14 to the clamps 13 of the circular rotor 11. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, it may be a type like a bag box 16 that uses suction cups to suck up a number of stacked bags 14 one by one from the top and supply them to the clamps 13 of the bag supplying section (1), or it may be a conveyor magazine type bag supplying device (not shown) that places a number of bags 14 sideways on a string belt conveyor, feeds the bags 14 forward, and sucks up the leading bags 14 one by one with suction cups and supplies them to the clamps 13. In the printing process in the bag opening section (2), the printer 17 prints, for example, the expiration date and date of manufacture on the surface of the bag 14 at appropriate positions, and in the bag opening section (2), air is sprayed to open the bag mouth, and the front and rear surfaces of the bag 14 are sucked by suction cups 18 to open the bag mouth halfway.

[0018] In the filling section (3), a filling machine 30 is provided adjacently. This filling machine 30 is provided with a filling auger (screw) 32, which is pulse-controlled by a servomotor, below a filling hopper 31, and fills the bag 14 with the packaged material, such as powder or granular material (filling process). In the weighing section (4), the bag 14 filled with the packaged goods is temporarily transferred from the clamp 13 to the gripping part of a weighing device 5 such as a load cell, the weight of the filled bag 14 is measured, and the measured value is output to the control device 4 (weighing process). The weighing result of the weighing device 5 is fed back to the filling machine 30 by the control device 4. Furthermore, bags 14 whose filling amount of the packaged goods exceeds the set range are discharged from a chute 19 provided in the next oversized bag discharge section (5) and sent out of the system (for example, the clamp 13 opens and the bags 14 are discharged out of the system from the chute 19) (oversized bag discharge process).

[0019] In the deaeration section (6), a deaeration device 20 provided corresponding to this deaeration section (6) exhausts the air inside the bag 14 and degasses it, for example, with a pair of sponge bodies 21 approaching and separating from each other and clamping the bag 14 from both sides (deaeration process). In the sealing section (7), the openings of the bags 14 that have been flattened by removing the air in the deaeration section (6) are sealed by a sealing device 22 (sealing process). In addition, the sealed portions of the bags 14 that have been warmed and softened by the sealing are cooled by the seal cooling device 23 provided in the cooling and discharging section (8) (cooling step). When the sealed portion is cooled by the seal cooling device 23, the clamp 13 opens and the bag 14 is transported out of the conveying path of the rotary bagging packaging machine 1 (discharge process), and is transported by the discharge conveyor 3 to the weight checker 2 side outside the system (checker transport process).

[0020] However, as briefly described above, the degassing operation of the degassing section (6), the sealing operation of the sealing section (7), and the cooling and discharging operation of the cooling discharge section (8) are only performed on the bags 14 whose weights measured by the weighing section (4) are within the set range. And in this way, the bags 14 with weights within the set range are discharged from the cooling discharge section (8), conveyed to the weight checker 2 via the conveying conveyor 3, and the final weight is checked (examined). Note that the check result of the weight checker is sent to the control device 4 in order to perform trend control in the same way as in the conventional case, and the auger (screw) 32 of the filling machine 30 is pulse-controlled.

[0021] On the other hand, for the bags 14 whose weights measured by the weighing section (4) are smaller than the set range, they are controlled by the control device 4, and the degassing operation, the sealing operation, and the cooling and discharging operation are not performed. These bags 14 remain open and pass through the conveying paths of the degassing section (6), the sealing section (7), and the cooling discharge section (8), and further pass through the conveying paths of the bag supply section (1) and the bag mouth opening section (2) without performing the bag supply operation and the printing and bag mouth opening operation (the air injection operation in the bag mouth opening section (2) is not performed when there is a risk that the powder and granules will fly up from the bag mouth).) After passing, the insufficient packaging materials are filled in the filling section (3). After that, the bags 14 filled with the packaging materials up to the set range are subjected to the degassing operation of the degassing section (6), the sealing operation of the sealing section (7), and the cooling and carrying out operation of the cooling carrying out section (8), and then conveyed to the weight checker 2 via the carrying out conveyor 3, and the final weight is checked. Note that FIG. 3 briefly shows the process (bag-packing method) by this bag-packing device in a flow chart. That is, when the bag 14 after filling is a qualified product with a weight within a predetermined range, it is sealed and conveyed to the side of the weight checker 2, but when the bag 14 after filling is an overweight product larger than the predetermined range, it is discharged outside the path (outside the system). On the other hand, when the bag 14 after filling is an underweight product smaller than the predetermined range, it is returned into the path again (indicated as recycling in FIG. 3), and the packaging materials are refilled.

[0022] As a result, bags 14 whose weight is smaller than the set range are not discharged outside the system but are transported again to the filling section (3) where the missing amount of packaged material is filled, eliminating the need to manually re-package the packaged material into bags 14 whose weight is smaller than the set range and which have been discharged outside the system, as in conventional bagging packaging devices and methods. This saves time and effort and improves production efficiency compared to conventional bagging packaging devices and methods. Another advantage of using a rotary bagging packaging machine 1 is that the material can be circulated again to the filling section (3) for rapid transport.

[0023] In addition, since there is no process in the circular rotor 11 to discharge bags 14 whose packaged contents are smaller than the set range out of the system, the time from filling to checking by the weight checker 2 can be shortened, and the filling amount can be corrected in a short time. As a result, it is possible to improve the filling efficiency compared to conventional bagging packaging devices and methods.

[0024] In this embodiment, the bag filling packaging apparatus is described as being equipped with a rotary bag filling packaging machine 1. This configuration and method are particularly suitable because bags 14 whose weight is smaller than the set range can be circulated and filled again by proceeding along the conveying path of the rotary bag filling packaging machine 1. However, this is not limited to the above. Even if each process section (1) to (8), such as the bag supply section where the bag supply process is performed, the bag filling section where the bag filling process is performed, the weighing section where the weighing process is performed, and the sealing section where the sealing process is performed, is arranged in a straight line, a return conveying path may be provided downstream of the weighing section (4) to return bags 14 whose weight is smaller than the set range back to the filling section (3) for refilling. [Industrial Applicability]

[0025] INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is useful in various bagging packaging apparatuses and bagging methods that continuously fill and package items to be packaged, including rotary type bagging packaging apparatuses. [Explanation of symbols]

[0026] 1. Bag filling and packaging machine 2. Weight checker (weight diagnostic device) 3. Discharge conveyor 4. Control device 5 Weighing device 11 Circular rotor 12 Clamp arm 13 Clamp 14 bags 15 Bag feeding device 16 bag box 17 Printing device 18 sucker 19 Shooter 20 Deaeration device 21 Sponge body 22 Sealing device 23 Seal cooling device 30 filling machine 31 Filling hopper 32 Auger (screw)

Claims

1. The bagging packaging device includes a rotary bagging packaging machine, a weight checker that checks the weight of the bags filled and packaged by the bagging packaging machine and discharged by the discharge conveyor, and a control device that controls each component of the bagging packaging device. In a rotary type bag filling packaging machine, a pair of clamp arms are supported on the periphery of a circular rotor, and a clamp is provided at the tip of each clamp arm to clamp both side edges of the bag. The circular rotor is provided with a bag supply section where empty bags are supplied by a bag supply device, a filling section where bags are filled with powder or granular material or other packaged material by a filling machine, a weighing section where a weighing device such as a load cell is provided and filled bags are weighed while being transferred between bags, an oversized bag discharge section where bags whose weight exceeds a set range are discharged from the conveying path of the circular rotor, a degassing section where air is removed from within the bags, a sealing section where the openings of the bags are sealed, and a cooling and unloading section where the sealed parts of the bags are cooled and the packed bags are unloaded from the conveying path of the circular rotor to the unloading conveyor. In the filling section, a filling machine is provided adjacent to the circular rotor, and the filling machine fills the bag with the packaged material using a filling auger pulse-controlled by a servo motor. In the weighing section, the bag filled with the packaged goods is temporarily transferred from the clamp to a load cell, the bag's weight is measured, and the measured value is output to the control device. The weighing result is also fed back to the filling machine by the control device. If the weight of the packaged item is greater than the set range, the clamp opens and the bag is discharged from the chute in the oversized bag discharge section and sent out of the system. Bags with a weight smaller than the set range will not have their mouths sealed in the sealing section, and will not be discharged from the cooling and discharging section to the outside of the system. Instead, they will travel again along the conveying path of the rotary bag filling and packaging machine, and after passing through the conveying path without undergoing the bag supplying operation or bag mouth opening operation in the bag supplying section and bag mouth opening section, they will be filled with the missing amount of packaged items in the filling section. Bags whose weight falls within the set range undergo the degassing operation in the degassing section, the sealing operation in the sealing section, and the cooling and discharging operation in the cooling and discharging section. The bags are then transported to the weight checker via the transport conveyor, where the final weight is checked. The results of the weight checker check are sent to the control device for trend control, and the auger of the filling machine is pulse-controlled. A bagging packaging device characterized by the above.

2. A bagging and packaging method for a bagging and packaging machine including a rotary bagging and packaging machine, a weight checker that checks the weight of a bag that has been filled and packaged by the bagging and packaging machine and discharged by a discharge conveyor, and a control device that controls each component of the bagging and packaging machine, comprising: A rotary type bag filling packaging machine includes a bag supply section in which empty bags are supplied by a bag supply device, a filling section in which bags are filled with powder or granular material or other packaged material by a filling machine, a weighing section in which a weighing device such as a load cell is provided and filled bags are weighed while being transferred between bags, an oversized bag discharge section in which bags whose weight exceeds a set range are discharged from the conveying path of the circular rotor, a degassing section in which air is removed from within the bags, a sealing section in which the mouths of the bags are sealed, and a cooling and conveying section in which the sealed portions of the bags are cooled and the packed bags are conveyed from the conveying path to the discharge conveyor. The control device of the bag filling packaging device controls each component as follows. Bags with a packaged item weight larger than the set range are discharged from a chute installed in the oversized bag discharge section by opening the clamps of the rotary bag filling and packaging machine, and are sent out of the system. Bags with a weight smaller than the set range will not have their mouths sealed in the sealing section, and will not be discharged from the cooling and discharging section to the outside of the system. Instead, they will travel again along the conveying path of the rotary bag filling and packaging machine, and after passing through the conveying path without undergoing the bag supplying operation or bag mouth opening operation in the bag supplying section and bag mouth opening section, they will be filled with the missing amount of packaged items in the filling section. Bags whose weight falls within the set range undergo the degassing operation in the degassing section, the sealing operation in the sealing section, and the cooling and discharging operation in the cooling and discharging section. The bags are then transported to the weight checker via the transport conveyor, where the final weight is checked. The results of the weight checker check are used for trend control, and the auger of the filling machine is pulse-controlled. A bag packaging method characterized by the above.

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