Labella

Abstract

To prevent a label from being held tilted on a transfer drum after the label is cut off the roll labels.SOLUTION: A labeler 1 is equipped with a correction roller 27 that sandwiches a label L cut by a rotary cutter unit 3 with a backup roller 22 and feeds the label downstream; and a transfer drum 7 (not shown) that is located on the adjacent downstream side to hold and transfer the label L and pass the label to an attaching drum 8 on the downstream side. When transporting the label L whose tip is shifted upward and tilted after cutting, the correction roller 27 is made to tilt clockwise in the drawing by a required angle in advance (Fig. 5(a)). Thereby, the label L after cut has the leading end of the label L lowered when sandwiched between the correction roller 27 and the backup roller 22 and fed out, and as a result, the upward inclination of the label L is corrected and the label L becomes horizontal (Fig. 5(b)), and the label L in the horizontal condition is held by the transfer drum 7 on the adjacent downstream side.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a labeler, and more particularly to a labeler that cuts a strip-shaped roll label into labels of a required length and attaches them to the outer surface of a container. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a labeler has been known that is equipped with a rotary cutter unit that cuts roll labels into labels of the required length and a transfer drum that transports the labels cut by the rotary cutter unit and hands them over to downstream equipment, allowing the labels to be attached to the outer surface of containers being transported (see Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-50372 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In recent years, as roll labels have become thinner and the materials, printing methods, and designs have become more diverse, it has become difficult to smoothly transport the labels to the transfer drum after cutting them to the required length. In particular, when the labels are transferred to the transfer drum after being cut by the rotary cutter unit, the leading edge of the label shifts upward or downward, resulting in an inclined state, making it impossible for the transfer drum to hold the label horizontally for transport. The tendency for the label to tilt when held by the transfer drum is not constant and varies depending on the thickness and material of the roll label. If the label is held on the transfer drum in a tilted state, when the transfer drum transfers the label to the adjacent downstream application drum and applies glue to the label, the glue also adheres to the application drum, causing poor transport conditions and ultimately resulting in the problem that the label is applied to the outer surface of the container in a tilted state. Here, the following are possible causes of the tilt of the label after cutting by the rotary cutter unit mentioned above: Differences in the thickness of the roll label cause the cutter to make different contact, which can cause the leading edge of the label to tilt after cutting, or the coefficient of friction of the label surface is not uniform across the entire surface due to the printing method, design, etc., which can cause the top and bottom edges of the label to slip differently, causing the label to tilt when transferred from the rotary cutter unit to the transfer drum. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention provides a label cutting system including a rotary cutter unit that cuts a strip-shaped roll label into labels of a required length, and a transfer drum that transfers the labels cut by the rotary cutter unit and delivers them to a downstream device, The rotary cutter unit includes a rotary cutter for cutting the roll label, and At the cutting position where the cutting blade is pressed A labeler equipped with a backup roller for supporting the roll label, a tilt correction mechanism for correcting tilt of the labels after they have been cut by the rotary cutter is provided downstream of the cutting position where the rotary cutter cuts the roll label and adjacent to the backup roller; The tilt correction mechanism is provided with a correction roller that is rotatable and clamps the label between itself and the backup roller to send it downstream, and the axis of the correction roller is inclined relative to the axis of the backup roller. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] With this configuration, the inclination of the correction roller corrects the inclination of the label being clamped and fed between the correction roller and the backup roller, and the label is delivered to the transfer drum in a horizontal position, thereby preventing the label from being tilted, misaligned up and down, or having misaligned seams when it is attached to a container. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a front view of the main part of FIG. 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a side view of the main part of FIG. 2. [Figure 5] 5A and 5B are front views showing the state in which the correction roller of the tilt correction mechanism in FIG. 3 is tilted, where FIG. 5A shows the case in which the leading edge (one end) of the label is moved upward to correct the tilt, and FIG. 5B shows the state after the tilt of the label has been corrected. [Figure 6] 6A and 6B are front views showing the state in which the correction roller of the tilt correction mechanism in FIG. 3 is tilted, where FIG. 6A shows the case in which the leading edge (one end) of the label is moved downward to correct the tilt, and FIG. 6B shows the state after the tilt of the label has been corrected. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The present invention will be explained below with reference to the illustrated embodiment. In FIG. 1, 1 is a rotary labeler. This labeler 1 cuts a strip-shaped roll label 2 into labels L of the required length using a rotary cutter unit 3. During subsequent transport, glue is applied to each cut label L, and then the label is attached to the outer surface of each container 5 moving through attachment position A using a transport means 4. The labeler 1 is equipped with a conveying means 4 that conveys a large number of containers 5 in an upright position in the direction of the arrow, a feed roller 6 that pulls out and supplies roll labels 2 from a reel (not shown), a rotary cutter unit 3 that sequentially cuts the roll labels 2 supplied from the feed roller 6 to the required length, a transfer drum 7 that sequentially holds each label L cut by the rotary cutter unit 3 and then transports them to an adjacent application drum 8 downstream, the application drum 8 that sequentially receives labels L from the transfer drum 7 and, during the subsequent transport process, applies each adhesive-coated label L to the outer surface of the container 5 at application position A, and a control device (not shown) that controls the operation of these components. The conveying means 4 is equipped with a supply conveyor 11 that conveys containers 5 in an upright state before labels L are attached from the right side of the figure to the left side. The containers 5 conveyed by the supply conveyor 11 are synchronized with a supply star wheel 13 by a timing screw 12, and then handed over from this supply star wheel 13 to a rotating table 14 rotating in the direction of the arrow, maintaining a predetermined distance. Each container 5 supplied to and held on the turntable 14 is rotated around its own axis while moving through application position A as the turntable 14 rotates in the direction of the arrow. Then, labels L coated with glue are successively spread from the application drum 8 onto the outer surface of the container 5 as it moves through application position A and rotates, so that the labels L are attached to the outer surface of the container 5 in a manner that surrounds the entire outer surface of the container 5. In this way, each container 5 to which a label L has been affixed while being moved by the turntable 14 to the attachment position A subsequently stops rotating when it passes the attachment position A and is transported to the position of the discharge star wheel 15 as the turntable 14 rotates, and is then discharged from the turntable 14 onto the discharge conveyor 16 by the discharge star wheel 15. The conveying means 4 of this embodiment is composed of a supply conveyor 11 that conveys containers 5, a supply star wheel 13 that delivers containers 5 to a turntable 14, the turntable 14 that conveys containers 5 while maintaining a predetermined distance between the preceding and following containers 5, a discharge star wheel 15 that discharges containers 5 from the turntable 14, and a discharge conveyor 16 that sends out containers 5 with labels L affixed to downstream processing equipment. The operation of these components of the conveying means 4 is controlled by a control device (not shown). The configuration of this conveying means 4 is already known from Patent Document 1 and other sources.

[0009] Next, when the transfer drum 7 is operated, it rotates in the direction of the arrow, and the outer surface of this transfer drum 7 is provided with a number of air intake holes (not shown). When the transfer drum 7 rotates, a negative pressure is applied to the numerous air intake holes. As a result, each label L cut to the required length from the label roll 2 by the rotary cutter 17 of the rotary cutter unit 3 is attracted to and held by the rotating transfer drum 7. The speed at which the transfer drum 7 transports the labels L it holds and moves in the direction of the arrow is set slightly faster than the speed at which the rotary cutter 17 of the rotary cutter unit 3 rotates in the direction of the arrow and cuts the labels L. Therefore, the label L cut by the rotary cutter 17 is held and transported by the transfer drum 7, maintaining a predetermined distance between it and the next label L to be cut. Next, suction surfaces 8A for suctioning the cut labels L are provided at equal intervals around the circumference of the outer circumferential surface of the application drum 8. These suction surfaces 8A are provided at predetermined intervals corresponding to the intervals between the adjacent containers 5, which are transported in the direction of the arrow by the rotary table 14. Like the transfer drum 7, each suction surface 8A is also provided with a number of air intake holes, and while the application drum 8 is rotating, negative pressure is applied to the air intake holes of each suction surface 8A. The speed at which the application drum 8 holds and transports the labels L is set to be the same as the speed at which the transfer drum 7 holds and transports the labels L. When the application drum 8 and the transfer drum 7 rotate in the direction of the arrow, each label L held and transported by the transfer drum 7 is delivered to each suction surface 8A of the application drum 8 at delivery position B, where it is adsorbed and held there. A gluing means 18 is arranged outside the conveying process of the application drum 8, slightly downstream of the transfer position B, to inject glue and apply it to the labels L, and the glue is applied by the gluing means 18 to each label L held and conveyed by the application drum 8. The speed at which the application drum 8 conveys the label L and the speed at which the turntable 14 rotates to convey the container 5 are set to be the same, so the label L held on each suction surface 8A of the application drum 8 moves at the same speed in synchronization with each container 5 on the turntable 14 moving through the application position A, and in this state the label L is applied so as to go around the outer surface of the container 5. In this embodiment, in order to apply a label L at application position A to a container 5 on a rotating table 14 rotating in the direction of the arrow, the rotating table 14, application drum 8, transfer drum 7, and rotary cutter 17 of the rotary cutter unit 3 are rotated synchronously with adjacent components by operation control by a control device.

[0010] Next, the feed rollers 6 are driven by a servo motor (not shown) and rotate independently of the rotary cutter 17 of the rotary cutter unit 3. Therefore, if you want to change the length of the label L to be affixed to the container 5, you can do so by changing the rotation speed of the feed rollers 6 to increase or decrease the conveyance speed of the roll label 2 while keeping the rotation speed of the rotary cutter 17 of the rotary cutter unit 3 constant. In other words, if a long label L is required, the conveyance speed of the roll label 2 by the feed rollers 6 can be set high, and if a short label L is required, the conveyance speed of the roll label 2 by the feed rollers 6 can be set low. In addition, the transport speed of the label L by the transfer drum 7 is always set to be equal to or greater than the transport speed of the roll label 2 by the feed roller 6, so that the roll label 2 is not excessively supplied and poor cutting by the rotary cutter 17 of the rotary cutter unit 3 does not occur.

[0011] 2 to 4 show the configuration of the rotary cutter unit 3 and the tilt correction mechanism 21, which is provided adjacent to it and corrects the tilt of the cut label L. This embodiment is characterized in that if the label L cut by the rotary cutter 17 of the rotary cutter unit 3 is tilted and not horizontal, the tilt correction mechanism 21 corrects the tilt of the label L so that it is horizontal before being delivered to the transfer drum 7. The rotary cutter unit 3 includes a cylindrical rotary cutter 17 having a radial cutting blade 17A at one point on its outer circumferential surface, and a cylindrical backup roller 22 that is rotatably arranged adjacent to the rotary cutter 17 and is constantly in pressure contact with the outer circumferential portion of the tilt correction mechanism 21. The rotary cutter 17 is rotatable about a vertical rotation axis 17B, and the backup roller 22 is also rotatable about a vertical rotation axis 22A. The rotary cutter 17 and backup roller 22 are maintained in a state in which a portion of their outer peripheries is pressed against each other with a required pressing force by a pressing means (not shown). When the roll label 2 is fed by the feed roller 6, it is positioned between the rotating rotary cutter 17 and backup roller 22 and is clamped between their outer peripheries. The roll label 2 is then fed out, and when the cutting blade 17A of the rotating rotary cutter 17 is pressed against the backup roller 22 at cutting position C, the roll label 2 is cut into labels L of a predetermined length. The cut labels L are then attracted and held by the transfer drum 7 located adjacent downstream. The cutting blade 17A is formed linearly in the vertical direction, so that the front and rear ends of the label L are cut perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the label L. The outer diameter of the backup roller 22 is set larger than the outer diameter of the rotary cutter 17, so that when the rotary cutter 17 and the backup roller 22 rotate synchronously, the pressing position of the cutting blade 17A against the backup roller 22 is different each time.

[0012] Next, the skew correction mechanism 21 is provided adjacent to the backup roller 22, between the rotary cutter 17 and the transfer drum 7. In other words, the skew correction mechanism 21 is provided adjacent to the backup roller 22, and between the downstream side of the cutting position C and the holding position D where the label L is held by the transfer drum 7. The tilt correction mechanism 21 comprises a support bracket 24 fixed vertically to a fixed frame 23, an elongated oscillating member 25 arranged on the back side of the support bracket 24, and a correction roller 27 rotatably supported by a support member 26 horizontally connected to the lower end of the oscillating member 25. Because the outer circumferential surface of the correction roller 27 is constantly biased toward the outer circumferential surface of the backup roller 22, the label L (roll label 2) that has passed through the cutting position C is sandwiched between the outer circumferential surface of the backup roller 22 and the outer circumferential surface of the correction roller 27 and is then sent downstream to a holding position by the transfer drum 7. In other words, the label L cut to the required length at the cutting position C is sandwiched between both rollers 22, 27 and then delivered to a holding position D of the transfer drum 7. A through-hole is drilled in the swinging member 25 at a position slightly above the support member 26, and a pin 28 is inserted into this through-hole, with the tip of the pin 28 fixed to the support bracket 28. This allows the swinging member 25 to swing around the pin 28 as the center of rotation, and at that time the axis of the correction roller 27 is also tilted. A pair of upper and lower elongated holes 24A, 24B are drilled near the upper end of the support bracket 24 along the conveying direction of the label L. On the other hand, a pair of upper and lower bolt holes 25A, 25B are formed at the upper end of the swinging member 25, corresponding to the positions of the elongated holes 24A, 24B. The upper bolt 31A is threaded into the bolt hole 25A radially outward from the backup roller 22 side, then passes through the elongated hole 24A and protrudes outward, where a nut 32 is threadedly engaged. The lower bolt 31B is threaded through the elongated hole 24B from the opposite side to the backup roller 22, and then threaded into the bolt hole 25B. By tightening the nut 32 and the bolt 31B, both bolts 31A and 31B are fixed to predetermined positions in the elongated holes 24A and 24B, thereby fixing the swinging member 25 and the correction roller 27. Furthermore, by loosening the nut 32 and the bolt 31B, the fastening positions of the bolts 31A and 31B in the elongated holes 24A and 24B can be changed, thereby changing the fixing positions of the swinging member 25 and the correction roller 27. In other words, the swinging member 25 can swing in the forward and reverse directions (clockwise and counterclockwise) in Figure 3 by the amount that the bolts 31A and 31B can move inside the long holes 24A and 24B, thereby making it possible to change the inclination angle of the axis of the correction roller 27. As described above, the tilt correction mechanism 21 of this embodiment is provided with the correction roller 27, and the tilt of this correction roller 27 can be adjusted by the fixing positions of the bolts 31A, 31B in the elongated holes 24A, 24B.

[0013] As shown in Figure 2, while the transfer drum 7, rotary cutter 17, and backup roller 22 are rotating, the roll label 2 is cut into labels L of the required length by the cutting blade 17A at cutting position C. However, as mentioned above, the way the cutting blade 17A contacts the roll label 2 differs depending on the thickness of the roll label 2, the printed content, etc., so after cutting, the leading edge (top portion) of the label L may shift upward or downward, become tilted, or may become meandering. Therefore, in this embodiment, cutting experiments are conducted in advance for each roll label 2 of all types planned to be used in the labeler 1, and as a result of these experiments, data is collected and saved regarding whether the label L will shift upward or downward after being cut by the rotary cutter unit 3, and the amount of this shift (amount of tilt) for each roll label 2 planned to be used. When actually using the labeler 1 to apply the label L to the container 5, the operator loosens the bolts 31A, 31B and nut 32 based on data already obtained through experiments for the roll label 2 to be used, and fixes the tilt angle of the correction roller 27 via the swinging member 25 at a position that is a predetermined angle according to the data. 5 and 6 show specific examples of when the correction roller 27 is fixed at an incline. First, Fig. 5 shows a case where the correction roller 27 is inclined so that the upper end of its axis is further rearward in the direction in which the label L is fed than the lower end. When the correction roller 27 is inclined in this way, the leading edge of the label L that is sandwiched between the correction roller 27 and the backup roller 22 and fed downstream will be lowered. Therefore, when cutting the roll label 2, which is inclined so that the leading edge of the label R is shifted upward after cutting based on experimental data, and the roll label 2 is to be cut into labels L and attached to the container 5, the operator tilts the correction roller 27 clockwise by a predetermined angle based on the experimental data, as shown in Figure 5(a). As a result, when the label L cut by the rotary cutter 17 is sandwiched between the correction roller 27 and the backup roller 22 and fed out, the leading edge of the label L is lowered, and the upward tilt of the label L is corrected to a horizontal state (Figure 5(b)). In other words, the label L is corrected to a horizontal state as shown by the dashed line in Figure 5(b), and is held in that horizontal state by the adjacent downstream transfer drum 7. 6 shows a case where the correction roller 27 is tilted so that the lower end of its axis is further rearward than the upper end in the feeding direction of the label L. When the correction roller 27 is tilted in this way, the leading edge of the label L that is sandwiched between the correction roller 27 and the backup roller 22 and fed downstream is raised upward. Therefore, when cutting the roll label 2, which is inclined so that the leading edge of the label R is shifted downward after cutting based on experimental data, and the roll label 2 is to be cut into labels L and attached to the container 5, the operator tilts the correction roller 27 counterclockwise by a predetermined angle based on the experimental data, as shown in Figure 6(a). As a result, when the label L after being cut by the rotary cutter 17 is sandwiched between the correction roller 27 and the backup roller 22 and fed out, the leading edge of the label L is raised, and as a result, the downward tilt of the label L is corrected and the label L becomes horizontal (Figure 6(b)). In other words, the label L is corrected to a horizontal state as shown by the dashed line in Figure 6(b), and is held in that horizontal state by the adjacent downstream transfer drum 7. Furthermore, experimental results showed that when cutting a label roll 2 in which the labels L are not tilted vertically after being cut by the rotary cutter 17, the operator adjusts the axis of the correction roller 27 so that it is vertical. In other words, the axis of the correction roller 27 is vertically aligned with the axis of the backup roller 22 (as shown in Figure 3). In this case, too, the labels L cut by the rotary cutter 17 are sandwiched between the correction roller 27 and the backup roller 22 and sent downstream, but the sent labels L are not corrected for tilt in the vertical direction, and are delivered to and held in a horizontal state by the transfer drum 7.

[0014] As described above, the labeler 1 of this embodiment is equipped with the tilt correction mechanism 21, and by tilting the correction roller 27 by the required amount, the label L is clamped and fed between the correction roller 27 and the backup roller 22, correcting the tilt of the label L and making it horizontal, and the label L that is reliably horizontal is held by the transfer drum 7 and transferred to the application drum 8. Therefore, when glue is applied to the label L held on the application drum 8 by the gluing means 18, it is possible to prevent the glue from adhering to the outer surface of the application drum 8 due to misalignment of the label L. Furthermore, according to this embodiment, when the label L is attached to the container 5 using the labeler 1, the label L can be prevented from tilting or shifting up or down, and the seams at the ends can be prevented from becoming misaligned.

[0015] It is also possible to omit the transfer drum 7 in the above embodiment and adopt a configuration in which the labels are transferred directly from the rotary cutter unit 3 to the application drum 8. In this case, the application drum 8 also serves as the transfer drum. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, cutting experiments were conducted in advance on various roll labels 2 to determine the inclination of the cut labels L and whether they tilt up or down when cut into labels L, and then, when actually attaching the labels L, the worker adjusted the inclination of the correction roller 27 in advance according to the roll label 2 to be used, but the following configuration may also be adopted: That is, an actuator such as an air cylinder may be connected to the upper end of the swinging member 25, and its operation may be controlled by a control device, and when the roll label 2 to be used is identified, the corresponding roll label 2 may be selected from experimental data stored in advance in the control device, and the amount of inclination of the swinging member 25 may be changed by the actuator to incline the correction roller 27 according to the identified roll label 2. Furthermore, the tilt of the label L being transferred by the transfer drum 7 may be detected by a detection means such as a camera, and the correction roller 27 may be tilted at a required angle based on the detection result of the detection means. [Explanation of symbols]

[0016] 1...Labeler 2...Roll label 3...Rotary cutter unit 5...Container 7...Transfer drum 17...Rotary cutter 21...Tilt correction mechanism 22...Backup roller 27...Correction roller R...Label

Claims

1. The label cutting system includes a rotary cutter unit that cuts a strip-shaped roll label into labels of a required length, and a transfer drum that transfers the labels cut by the rotary cutter unit and delivers them to a downstream device. The rotary cutter unit is a labeler equipped with a rotary cutter that cuts a roll label and a backup roller that supports the roll label at a cutting position where the cutting blade of the rotary cutter is pressed against the roll label. a tilt correction mechanism for correcting tilt of the labels after they have been cut by the rotary cutter is provided downstream of the cutting position where the rotary cutter cuts the roll label and adjacent to the backup roller; The tilt correction mechanism is provided with a correction roller that is rotatable and sandwiches the label between itself and the backup roller to send it downstream, and the axis of the correction roller is inclined relative to the axis of the backup roller.

2. 2. The labeler according to claim 1, wherein the axis of the correction roller can be inclined at a required angle with respect to the axis of the backup roller.

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