Container transfer device

Abstract

To provide a container conveying apparatus capable of correcting a posture of a container before inspecting the container.SOLUTION: A container conveying apparatus 10 includes a first inspection wheel 14 having a plurality of neck grippers for gripping a neck of a capped container and moving the neck grippers to convey the container. A first inspection device 48 is arranged along a conveying path of the first inspection wheel 14. A container posture correcting device 36 is arranged between a starting end of the conveying path of the first inspection wheel 14 and the first inspection device 48 so as to contact and press downward a cap of the container held by the neck gripper so that an axis of the container is corrected along a vertical direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a container conveying device that grips and conveys the neck of a container with a cap attached thereto.

Background Art

[0002] In a container conveying device that grips and conveys the neck of a container with a cap attached thereto by a gripper, a device equipped with an inspection device for detecting capping defects is known (Patent Document 1). In this device, slit light is irradiated onto the top surface of the cap attached to the container being conveyed, the unevenness of the top surface of the cap is detected by the light cutting method, and the quality of capping is determined.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the device of Patent Document 1, if the inspection is performed with the axis of the container held by the gripper deviated from the vertical direction, the inspection accuracy may decrease and false determination may occur.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a container conveying device capable of correcting the posture of a container before inspecting the container.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The container conveying device according to the first invention of the present invention is provided with a plurality of openable and closable neck grippers for gripping the necks of containers with caps attached, a first endless conveying device for moving the neck grippers to convey the containers gripped by the neck grippers, a first inspection device arranged along the conveying path of the first endless conveying device, and a container posture correction device arranged between the starting end of the conveying path of the first endless conveying device and the first inspection device, which corrects the axial center of the container to be along the vertical direction by abutting against the top surface of the cap of the container gripped by the neck gripper and pressing downward.

[0007] The container conveying device according to the second invention of the present invention is characterized in that, in the first invention, the container posture correction device is composed of a plurality of rollers respectively attached to horizontal rotation shafts whose longitudinal directions intersect the conveying direction of the first endless conveying device.

[0008] The container conveying device according to the third invention of the present invention is characterized in that, in the first or second invention, on the adjacent downstream side of the first endless conveying device, there are a plurality of vertical grippers having a liftable head portion that abuts against the top surface of the cap of the container, a bin base that supports the bottom surface of the container, a lifting mechanism for lifting at least one of the head portion and the bin base, and a rotating device for rotating at least one of the head portion and the bin base. The second endless conveying device can move the vertical grippers to grip the container with the head portion and the bin base and convey the container while rotating it around its axial center, and a second inspection device arranged along the conveying path of the second endless conveying device.

Advantages of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a container conveying device capable of correcting the posture of a container before inspecting the container.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Embodiments for Carrying out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the arrangement of a container conveying device which is an embodiment of the present invention.

[0012] The container conveying device 10 of the present embodiment includes a first inspection wheel (first endless conveying device) 14 that conveys a container V with a cap C attached thereto, and a second inspection wheel (second endless conveying device) 16 that is disposed adjacent to the downstream side of the first inspection wheel 14. The container V is supplied from a capper or a labeler (not shown) disposed on the upstream side, and the container V with the cap C attached thereto is supplied to the first inspection wheel 14 via the introduction wheel 12. The container V that has passed through the first inspection wheel 14 is transferred to the discharge conveyor 20 via the second inspection wheel 16 and the discharge wheel 18, and is discharged to a downstream processing device (not shown) such as a caser by the discharge conveyor 20. The introduction wheel 12, the first inspection wheel 14, the second inspection wheel 16, and the discharge wheel 18 are rotated synchronously in opposite directions alternately by drive motors 12M, 14M, 16M, and 18M, respectively.

[0013] The introduction wheel 12 holds the container V by upper and lower grippers (not shown) that sandwich the container V from above and below. The upper and lower grippers are arranged at predetermined intervals along the outer periphery of the introduction wheel 12 and are composed of a support plate that supports the bottom of the container V and a cap pressing member that abuts against the top surface of the cap C.

[0014] On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2 (longitudinal sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. 1), the first inspection wheel 14 holds the container V by a neck gripper 22 that grips immediately below the flange portion Vf provided on the neck portion Vn of the container V. That is, the container V is conveyed in a state of being suspended by the neck gripper 22. The neck grippers 22 are arranged at predetermined intervals along the outer periphery of the rotating body 24 of the first inspection wheel 14. Each neck gripper 22 is composed of a pair of gripper pieces, and the base end portions of the respective gripper pieces are attached to the upper ends of the swing shafts 26. The swing shafts 26 are vertically supported by an upper guide 24A and a lower guide 24B that extend outward from the outer periphery of the rotating body 24.

[0015] Near the central portion of the swing shaft 26, gears 26A that mesh with each other are respectively provided, whereby the swing shafts 26 rotate in opposite directions at the same angle. Further, the base end portion of an arm 28 is attached to the lower end portion of one of the swing shafts 26, and a cam follower 28A is provided on the lower surface of the tip portion of the arm 28. The cam follower 28A travels on the outer peripheral surface (cam surface) of a cam 30 fixedly arranged along the outer periphery of the first inspection wheel 14 as the rotating body 24 rotates. A pin 28B is provided on the upper surface of the tip portion of the arm 28, and the other end of a spring 32 whose one end is attached to a pin 24C provided on the lower surface of the rotating body 24 is attached to the pin 28B. The spring 32 biases the cam follower 28A toward the cam 30, and the cam follower 28A is constantly pressed against the cam 30. When the cam follower 28A moves to the inside of the rotating body 24, the swing shaft 26 is rotated in a direction to close the neck gripper 22, and when it moves to the outside, the swing shaft 26 is rotated in a direction to open the neck gripper 22.

[0016] On the upper surface of each gripper piece of the neck gripper 22 of the first inspection wheel 14 of the present embodiment, a contact member 34 that engages with the upper surface of the flange portion Vf is provided. The contact member 34 prevents the container V being conveyed in a suspended state from tilting due to centrifugal force by sandwiching the upper and lower sides of the flange portion Vf together with the neck gripper 22.

[0017] Also, near the II-II cross section of the first inspection wheel 14 of the present embodiment, a container posture correction device 36 is arranged as shown in FIG. 1. The container posture correction device 36 of the present embodiment includes rollers 38 that are pressed against the top surface of the cap C of the container V being conveyed. In the present embodiment, five rollers 38 are arranged along the conveyance path of the container V. FIG. 3 shows a schematic side view (a view seen from the arrow direction in the III direction of FIG. 2) that develops and shows the arrangement of a plurality of rollers 38 along the conveyance path in a straight line.

[0018] The rollers 38 are arranged above the container V being conveyed, and both ends of the rotation shaft 38A of the roller 38 are pivotally supported by a C-shaped frame 40 that is open downward. The rotation shaft 38A of the roller 38 located at the center among the five rollers 38 is arranged along the radial direction of the rotating body 24 so as to be orthogonal to the rotation shaft of the rotating body 24, and is orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the container V. The rotation shafts 38A of the remaining rollers 38 are arranged in parallel with the rotation shaft 38A of the roller 38 located at the center. That is, the five rollers 38 are linearly arranged along the tangent direction of the rotating body 24. Even if arranged linearly in this way, since the conveyance path of the first inspection wheel 14 is sufficiently larger than the arrangement interval of the rollers, all five rollers are pressed against the top surface of the cap C.

[0019] From the center of the upper surface of the frame 40, a shaft 40A extends vertically upward, and its upper part passes through the guide hole 42A of the horizontally arranged shaft guide 42. The shaft guide 42 is attached to the fixing part via a bracket 42B. At the upper end of the shaft 40A, a stopper 40B is provided to prevent the shaft 40A from falling downward from the guide hole 42A. Also, between the upper surface of the frame 40 and the shaft guide 42, a spring 44 is wound around the shaft 40A.

[0020] Furthermore, a rotary shaft guide 46 extends vertically downward from the lower surface of the shaft guide 42. A long hole 46A extending vertically is provided in the lower part of the rotary shaft guide 46, and one end of the rotary shaft 38A of the roller 38 is fitted therein. Thereby, the roller 38 can move up and down within the range of the long hole 46A and is constantly biased vertically downward by the spring 44. The roller 38 sequentially rides on the cap C of the conveyed container V, presses the cap C while traveling on the cap C, and corrects the posture of the inclined container V vertically.

[0021] FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 1. At the position of line IV-IV, a first inspection device 48 is arranged along the conveyance path of the container V. The first inspection device 48 includes a cap top surface inspection device 48A that irradiates slit light from above to the top surface of the cap C and performs imaging to detect abnormalities of the cap C, and a bottom surface inspection device 48B that irradiates slit light from below to the bottom surface of the container V and performs imaging to detect abnormalities of the bottom surface. The cap top surface inspection device 48A and the bottom surface inspection device 48B are respectively arranged above and below the conveyance path of the container V and are fixed to the fixing part via brackets 50A and 50B respectively.

[0022] FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line V-V of FIG. 1 corresponding to the position where the container V is transferred from the first inspection wheel 14 to the second inspection wheel 16.

[0023] The second inspection wheel 16 holds the container V by upper and lower grippers that sandwich the container V from above and below, namely, an upper gripper 52A and a lower gripper 52B. The upper gripper 52A and the lower gripper 52B are arranged at predetermined intervals along the outer peripheries of an upper rotating body 54A and a lower rotating body 54B of the second inspection wheel 16, respectively. The upper gripper 52A is rotatably provided at the lower end of a vertically arranged shaft 56A and includes a head portion 57 that engages with the top surface of the cap C. The shaft 56A is held by the upper rotating body 54A so as to be vertically movable via a guide sleeve 58, and a cam follower 60A is attached above the shaft 56A via a member 60. The cam follower 60A engages with a cam surface of a lifting cam 62 fixedly arranged along the outer periphery of the upper rotating body 54A. When the upper rotating body 54A rotates, the cam follower 60A travels on the cam surface of the lifting cam 62 to move the shaft 56A and the head portion 57 up and down.

[0024] The lower gripper 52B includes a bottle stand 64 integrally provided at the upper end of a vertically arranged shaft 56B. The shaft 56B is held by the lower rotating body 54B so as to be rotatable and vertically movable via a guide sleeve 66. A driven gear 68B that meshes with a driving gear 68A is provided on the shaft 56B, and the driving gear 68A is rotatable by a servo motor (rotating device) 70. The servo motor 70 is fixed to the lower rotating body 54B via a support member 72.

[0025] A lifting base 74 that rotatably supports the shaft 56B is provided at the lower end of the shaft 56B. One end of a lever 76 is pivotally supported by the lifting base 74, and the central portion of the lever 76 is pivotally supported by the support member 72 via a rotating shaft 76A. A cam follower 76B is provided at the other end of the lever 76, and the cam follower 76B engages with a cam surface of a lifting cam 78 fixedly arranged along the outer periphery of the lower rotating body 54B. When the lower rotating body 54B rotates, the cam follower 76B travels on the cam surface of the lifting cam 78 to move the shaft 56B and the bottle stand 64 up and down.

[0026] When the container V held by the neck gripper 22 of the first inspection wheel 14 is conveyed to the position of the V-V line (delivery position), the upper and lower grippers 52A and 52B are positioned above and below the container V. As the lifting cams 62 and 78 cause the head portion 57 to descend and the bottle stand 64 to ascend, the container V is sandwiched between the head portion 57 and the bottle stand 64. At the same time, the neck gripper 22 is opened by the cam 30, and the container V is transferred from the first inspection wheel 14 to the second inspection wheel 16.

[0027] When the container V is transferred to the second inspection wheel 16, the servo motor 70 is rotated at a predetermined speed, and the container V and the head portion 57 are rotated together with the bottle stand 64 about the axis center of the container V. In the second inspection wheel 16, a second inspection device 80 for inspecting the side surface of the container V is arranged in the section where the container V is conveyed from the delivery position (V-V line position) to the discharge wheel 18. The second inspection device 80 is composed of, for example, four cameras 80A, 80B, 80C, and 80D, and each camera is arranged at a predetermined interval along the outer circumference of the second inspection wheel 16. The cameras 80A to 80D sequentially photograph the side surface of the rotating container V over its entire circumference, and the photographed images of the container V are sent to the control device 82, where labels and abnormalities of the container V are inspected.

[0028] The container V transferred from the second inspection wheel 16 to the discharge conveyor 20 via the discharge wheel 18 is discharged from the line by an ejector mechanism (not shown) if it is determined to be defective based on the inspection results of the first inspection wheel 14 and the second inspection wheel 16.

[0029] As described above, according to the container conveying device of the present embodiment, by arranging the container posture correction device upstream of the inspection device, the posture of the container can be corrected before inspecting the container.

[0030] Note that the container attitude correction device may be a belt wound around a plurality of pulleys, or may be a plate made of a highly slippery material. Furthermore, the rollers and the belt may be configured to be driven and rotated in synchronization with the conveyance speed of the neck gripper. Also, from the first inspection device, the bottom surface inspection device for inspecting the bottom surface of the container may be omitted, and a plurality of inspection devices may be arranged at other positions.

[0031] Also, in this embodiment, the container attitude correction device is constituted by five rollers, but the number can be appropriately changed. Furthermore, in this embodiment, a plurality of rollers are arranged linearly, but when the first inspection wheel 14 has a small diameter, a plurality of rollers may be arranged so as to draw an arc corresponding to the conveyance path of the first inspection wheel 14.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0032] 10 Container conveyance device 14 First inspection wheel (first endless conveyance device) 16 Second inspection wheel (second endless conveyance device) 36 Container attitude correction device 38 Roller 48 First inspection device 52A Upper gripper 52B Lower gripper 57 Head part 64 Bin stand 70 Servo motor (rotation device) 80 Second inspection device V Container Vf Flange part Vn Neck part

Claims

1. A plurality of openable and closable neck grippers for gripping the neck of a container with a cap are arranged, and a first endless conveyor for moving the neck grippers and conveying the container gripped by the neck grippers, A first inspection device arranged along the conveying path of the first endless conveyor, A container posture correction device arranged between the starting end of the conveying path of the first endless conveyor and the first inspection device, which abuts against the top surface of the cap of the container gripped by the neck gripper and presses downward to correct the axial center of the container to be along the vertical direction. A container conveying device characterized by comprising:

2. The container conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the container posture correction device is composed of a plurality of rollers respectively attached to a horizontal rotating shaft whose longitudinal direction intersects the conveying direction of the first endless conveyor.

3. On the adjacent downstream side of the first endless conveyor, a plurality of vertical grippers having a liftable head portion that abuts against the top surface of the cap of the container, a bin base that supports the bottom surface of the container, a lifting mechanism for lifting at least one of the head portion and the bin base, and a rotating device for rotating at least one of the head portion and the bin base are arranged. While moving the vertical grippers to grip the container with the head portion and the bin base, a second endless conveyor capable of conveying the container while rotating it around its axis, and a second inspection device arranged along the conveying path of the second endless conveyor. The container conveying device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by comprising:

Images