Packaging equipment

Abstract

To improve workability during facility maintenance by reducing density of a mechanical facility in a manufacturing line provided in a box-making / packaging step.SOLUTION: There are provided a box-making unit 30, a product-filling unit 50, a box-sealing unit 70 and a carrying-out unit 80 along a conveyance passage 41 in this order. The box-making unit 30 comprises a first robot arm 33 installed above a first work head 31 and the conveyance passage 41. The product-filling unit 50 comprises a second robot arm 53 installed above a second work head 51 and the conveyance passage 41. The box-sealing unit 70 comprises a third robot arm 73 installed above a third work head 71 and the conveyance passage 41. The carrying-out unit 80 comprises a fourth robot arm 83 installed above a fourth work head 81 and the conveyance passage 41.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a packaging device for packaging products, and particularly to a packaging device that performs operations of manufacturing a half-case carton from a blank sheet, filling the product, and then sealing the carton after filling the product.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, in a production line for packaging products, a manufacturing and packaging process has been introduced in which a half-case carton is manufactured from a blank sheet of a wraparound-type carton, the product is packed, and then the carton is sealed. For example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose packaging devices used in this process.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the conventional packaging devices described in Patent Documents 1 to 2, for the operations of each process such as taking out the blank sheet, manufacturing the carton, filling the product, sealing the carton, and carrying out the carton, equipment mechanisms mainly performing linear operations such as an X-Y table or an X-Y-Z stage are used. Therefore, there are problems that the mechanism is complex, the mechanical equipment is concentrated around the conveyance path of the production line and the visibility is poor, and the workability during equipment maintenance is poor.

[0005] In addition, when changes such as changing the size of the carton or changing the model (model change) occur, equipment replacement for replacing the process equipment to conform to the change or equipment adjustment for changing the size of the process equipment occurs, and there are problems that the work burden during model change is large and the production efficiency is low.

[0006] This disclosure is made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a packaging device that can simplify equipment by avoiding the concentration of machinery and equipment on the manufacturing line and improving workability during equipment maintenance in a box-making and packaging process in which half-box cartons are made from blank sheets, filled with products, and then sealed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A packaging apparatus, which is one aspect of this disclosure, The system comprises, in this order, a transport path, a movable means that can move along the transport path, a carton-making unit that forms a half-carton from a blank sheet along the transport path and places it on the movable means, a product-filling unit that fills the half-carton with products, a sealing unit that seals the half-carton to form a carton containing the products, and an unloading unit that unloads the carton from the movable means. The sealing unit has a work head, a robot arm installed above the transport path that supports the work head, and a pressing plate that contacts the lid of the half-carton to seal it. The pressing plate includes a pair of movable members, and the work head has a support mechanism that allows the spacing between the movable members in the vertical or horizontal direction in the planar direction of the blank sheet to be variable. It is characterized by the following: [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a packaging apparatus is available that can reduce the density of machinery and equipment in the manufacturing line and improve workability during equipment maintenance in a box-making and packaging process in which a half-box carton is made from a blank sheet, filled with products, and then sealed.

[0009] Furthermore, it can improve production efficiency by reducing the need to replace or adjust process equipment when changing models, which was previously required. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] (a) is a plan view of a wrap-around carton supplied to the packaging device 1 according to the embodiment, and (b) is a perspective view of a half-box carton. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view showing the configuration of the packaging device 1 according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] This is a plan view showing the configuration of the packaging device 1. [Figure 4] This is a process diagram showing one aspect of the manufacturing operation in packaging apparatus 1. [Figure 5] (a) is a front view showing the configuration of the supply unit 10 and the box-making unit 30, and (b) is a top view. [Figure 6] This is a perspective view showing the formation operation of a half-box carton by the box-making unit 30. [Figure 7](a) is a right side view showing the configuration of the mandrel 31 and the holding mechanism 32 in the box-making unit 30, and (b) is a top view. [Figure 8] (a) and (b) are schematic front views illustrating the product filling operation by the product filling unit 50. [Figure 9] (a) to (c) are schematic front views illustrating the gluing operation by the gluing unit 60. [Figure 10] (a) is a schematic front view illustrating the sealing operation by the sealing unit 70, and (b) is a left side view. [Figure 11] (a) is a schematic front view illustrating the sealing operation by the sealing unit 70, and (b) is a left side view. [Figure 12] (a) and (b) are schematic front views illustrating the mold change operation by the sealing unit 70. [Figure 13] (a) and (b) are schematic front views illustrating the carton unloading operation by the unloading unit 80. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] Summary of Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention The packaging device according to the embodiments in the present disclosure includes a conveyance path, a movable unit movable on the conveyance path, a case manufacturing unit that forms a half-case carton from a blank sheet along the conveyance path and mounts it on the movable unit, a product filling unit that fills the half-case carton with a product, a sealing unit that seals the half-case carton to form a carton containing the product, and a discharging unit that discharges the carton from the movable unit, in this order. The case manufacturing unit includes a first work head, a first robot arm installed above the conveyance path that supports the first work head, the product filling unit includes a second work head, a second robot arm installed above the conveyance path that supports the second work head, the sealing unit includes a third work head, a third robot arm installed above the conveyance path that supports the third work head, and the discharging unit includes a fourth work head, a fourth robot arm installed above the conveyance path that supports the fourth work head, respectively, and is characterized by this.

[0012] Also, in another aspect, in the aspect described in any of the above, the case manufacturing unit forms a half-case carton by bending the blank sheet with the first work head by moving the first robot arm, the product filling unit fills the half-case carton mounted on the movable unit with a product by moving the second robot arm, the sealing unit forms a carton containing the product by sealing the lid of the half-case carton on which the product is mounted with the third work head, and the discharging unit may be configured to discharge the carton mounted on the movable unit from the movable unit by the fourth work head by moving the fourth robot arm.

[0013] In another aspect, in any of the aspects described above, further provided is a supply unit for supplying the blank sheet, the supply unit including a fifth work head and a fifth robot arm that supports the fifth work head and is installed above the conveyance path, and the fifth work head may be configured to take out a blank sheet from the sheet stack and supply it to the case manufacturing unit.

[0014] In another aspect, in any of the aspects described above, the first work head has a mandrel for bending the blank sheet, the second work head has a product suction head for sucking and filling a product into the half-case carton, the third work head has a pressing plate for abutting against and sealing the lid of the half-case carton, the fourth work head has a carton suction head for sucking and carrying out the carton, and the fifth work head may have a sheet suction head for sucking the blank carton and taking it out from the sheet stack.

[0015] In another aspect, in any of the aspects described above, the first work head may have a holding mechanism that enables the interval in the longitudinal or transverse direction in the plane direction of the mandrel on the blank sheet to be variable.

[0016] In another aspect, in any of the aspects described above, the pressing plate may be composed of a pair of movable members, and the third work head may have a support mechanism that enables the interval between the members in the longitudinal or transverse direction in the plane direction of the blank sheet to be variable.

[0017] ≪Embodiment≫ The configuration of the packaging apparatus 1 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Here, in this specification, the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction in each figure may be the width direction, depth direction, and height direction, respectively, and the positive direction of the height direction may be the "up" direction and the negative direction may be the "down" direction. Also, the front direction of the unit constituting the packaging apparatus 1 is determined for each unit and may differ between units.

[0018] Furthermore, the scale of the components in each drawing is not necessarily the same as the actual scale. Also, in this specification, the symbol "~" used to indicate a numerical range includes the values ​​at both ends. In addition, the materials, numerical values, etc. described in this embodiment are merely examples of preferred materials and are not limiting. Furthermore, modifications can be made as appropriate without departing from the scope of the technical idea of ​​this disclosure. In addition, combinations of parts of the configuration with other embodiments are possible as long as they do not result in inconsistencies.

[0019] <Composition: Blank sheet, half-box carton> The configuration of a blank sheet 100 supplied to a packaging device 1 according to one embodiment of this disclosure, and a half-box carton 100A formed from the blank sheet 100, will be described.

[0020] Figure 1(a) is a plan view of a wrap-around carton supplied to the packaging device 1 according to the embodiment.

[0021] Blank sheet 100 is a blank sheet made of cardboard or corrugated cardboard that is unfolded into a sheet shape called a wrap-around sheet, and is divided into multiple surfaces that make up a three-dimensional object by fold lines.

[0022] Specifically, as shown in Figure 1(a), the blank sheet 100 is mainly composed of a base portion 101, a front wall portion 102, a rear wall portion 103, and a lid portion 104. The base portion 101, front wall portion 102, rear wall portion 103, and lid portion 104 each have left flaps 105L to 108L that constitute the left wall and right flaps 105R to 108R that constitute the right wall, respectively, connected across the fold line. In addition, the lid portion 104 has a front flap 109 that overlaps with the outer surface of the front wall portion 102 after box manufacturing and serves as an adhesive area, connected across the fold line.

[0023] Figure 1(b) is a perspective view of a half-box carton 100A made from a blank sheet 100. As shown in Figure 1(b), the half-box carton 100A is a half-box carton with a lid, formed by folding the front wall portion 102, rear wall portion 103, left flaps 105L~107L, and right flaps 105R~107R of the blank sheet 100 upward along their respective base bending lines, with the base surface portion 101 serving as the bottom surface. The base surface portion 101 of the blank sheet 100 serves as the reference surface in the carton making process. In addition, the left flaps 106L and 107L are positioned inside 105L, and the right flaps 106R and 107R are positioned inside 105R during carton making.

[0024] The product is filled into this half-box carton 100A, and the inner surface of the front flap 109 and the outer surface of the front wall portion 102 are bonded together to form a carton 100B containing the product.

[0025] <Regarding the configuration of packaging device 1> The configuration of the packaging device 1 will be explained using drawings. Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the packaging device 1 according to an embodiment, and Figure 3 is a plan view.

[0026] (Overall structure) The packaging device 1 is a manufacturing line that performs the processes of box making, product filling, sealing, and unloading, along the conveying means 40, and unloads cartons 100B in which the product PR is packaged.

[0027] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the packaging device 1 includes a transport path 41 and a transport means 40 having a plurality of movable means 42. The device includes a box-making unit 30 at position SP1 on the transport path 41 that forms a half-box carton 100A from a blank sheet 100 and places it on the transport means 40, a product-filling unit 50 at position SP2 that fills the half-box carton 100A with product PR, a gluing unit 60 at position SP3 that glues a predetermined portion of the half-box carton 100A, a sealing unit 70 at positions SP4-5 that seals the half-box carton 100A to form a carton 100B containing the product, and an unloading unit 80 at position SP6 that unloads the carton 100B from the transport means 40.

[0028] Furthermore, the packaging device 1 includes, in front of the box-making unit 30, a supply unit 10 for taking blank sheets 100 from a sheet stack 100x in which multiple blank sheets 100 are stacked flat, and a correction unit 20 for correcting the position and / or angle of the blank sheets in the planar direction.

[0029] Furthermore, the system includes a control unit 90 that controls these components, and the supply unit 10, correction unit 20, box-making unit 30, transport means 40, product filling unit 50, gluing unit 60, and sealing unit 70 are all controlled by the control unit 90 to operate in conjunction with each other.

[0030] With this configuration, the packaging device 1 can perform the following operations: form a half-carton 100A from the sheet stack 100x supplied in the box-making unit 30, transport the half-carton 100A by the transport means 40, fill the half-carton 100A with product PR in the product-filling unit 50, seal the half-carton 100A in the sealing unit 70, and transport the carton 100B containing product PR outside the transport means 40 in the discharge unit 80.

[0031] In this embodiment, the packaging apparatus 1 will be described using a blank sheet 100 with a wrap-around shape for making half-box cartons 100A as an example of the blank sheet 100 to be made into a box. However, the blank sheet 100 may be of a shape other than wrap-around, such as a straight shape.

[0032] (Configuration and operation of each unit) The following describes the configuration of each unit in the packaging device 1 and the operations performed in each unit.

[0033] Figure 4 is a process diagram showing the packaging operation in the packaging device 1. Figure 5(a) is a front view showing the configuration and operation of the supply unit 10 and the box-making unit 30, and (b) is a top view.

[0034] [Supply Unit 10] The supply unit 10 is a mechanism unit that takes blank sheets 100 one by one from a sheet stack 100x in which multiple blank sheets 100 are stacked flat, and supplies them to the correction unit 20. Therefore, the planar direction of the blank sheets 100 is parallel to the XY plane in Figures 5(a) and 5(b).

[0035] As shown in Figures 5(a) and 5(b), the supply unit 10 includes a sheet suction head 11, a lifting arm 12, a horizontally movable arm 13, and a guide rail 14.

[0036] Of these, the sheet suction head 11 and the lifting arm 12 constitute a fifth work head, and the horizontal movable arm 13 and the guide rail 14 constitute a fifth robot arm.

[0037] Multiple sheet suction heads 11 are arranged in the Y direction, and each has an intake hole on its downward-facing head surface. The intake holes are connected to a vacuum pump or the like (not shown). By applying negative pressure to the intake holes while the head surfaces of the sheet suction heads 11 are in contact with the upper surface of the sheet stack 100x, a single blank sheet 100 can be held by suction.

[0038] The lifting arm 12 is connected to the sheet suction head 11 and is an arm member configured to allow the sheet suction head 11 to move up and down in the vertical direction.

[0039] The horizontal movable arm 13 is a conveying means that supports multiple lifting arms 12 and is configured to allow the lifting arms 12 to move in the X direction along the guide rail 14.

[0040] The guide rail 14 is a rail mechanism that guides the movement of the horizontally movable arm 13.

[0041] The horizontal movable arm 13 includes, for example, a drive motor and is driven based on a control signal emitted from the control unit 90, allowing the position of the sheet suction head 11 in the X direction to be changed along the guide rail 14.

[0042] In the operation of this supply unit 10, first, a blank sheet 100 is taken from the sheet stack 100x and supplied (step S1).

[0043] Specifically, the supply unit 10 holds a single blank sheet 100 by applying negative pressure F1 to the intake hole 21a while the head surface of the sheet suction head 11 is in contact with the upper surface of the sheet stack 100x. Then, with the blank sheet 100 held in suction by the sheet suction head 11, the lifting arm 12 is raised to lift the blank sheet 100 on the top surface of the sheet stack 100x, and the horizontal movable arm 13 is moved in the X direction along the guide rail 14 to transport the blank sheet 100 to the position of the correction unit 20 (M1). After that, the lifting arm 12 is lowered, and the blank sheet 100 is placed on the base 21 of the correction unit 20 and the negative pressure is released, thereby placing the blank sheet 100 on the base 21 of the correction unit 20.

[0044] [Correction Unit 20] The correction unit 20 is a mechanism for correcting the position and / or angle of the supplied blank sheet 100 in the XY plane direction, so that the position and angle of the blank sheet 100 in the planar direction are within a reference range.

[0045] As shown in Figures 5(a) and 5(b), the correction unit 20 includes a base 21, a support column 22, a rotation mechanism 23, a sliding mechanism 24, an imaging means 25, a light source 26, and a suction mechanism 27.

[0046] The base 21 is a support base on which the blank sheet 100 supplied by the supply unit 10 is placed, and has a plurality of intake holes arranged in a row in the Y direction on its upper surface.

[0047] The intake port is connected to a suction mechanism 27, which is connected to, for example, a vacuum pump. With the blank sheet 100 mounted on the base 21, the suction mechanism 27 can apply negative pressure to the intake port, thereby allowing the blank sheet 100 to be held in place by suction to the upper surface of the base 21.

[0048] The support column 22 is a structural member that supports the base 21.

[0049] The rotation mechanism 23 is a rotational motion mechanism that supports the support column 22 and is configured to rotate about a reference rotation axis in the X-Y plane.

[0050] The sliding mechanism 24 is a linear motion mechanism that supports the rotating mechanism 23 and is configured to be movable in the Y direction (depth direction).

[0051] The rotating mechanism 23 and the sliding mechanism 24 include, for example, a driving means such as a motor or a linear motor, and are driven based on a control signal emitted from the control unit 90. By rotating the base 21 around an axis parallel to the Z direction, the rotating mechanism 23 can adjust the angle of the base 21 in the XY plane, and the sliding mechanism 24 can reversibly change the position of the base 21 in the Y direction.

[0052] The imaging means 25 is a plurality of image acquisition means, such as a CCD camera, arranged in the Y direction, for capturing images of the outer shape portion in the Y direction of the blank sheet 100 mounted on the substrate 21.

[0053] The light source 26 is an illumination light source, such as a white LED, positioned opposite the imaging means 25 with the substrate 21 in the Z direction.

[0054] The correction unit 20 performs an operation to correct the position and angle of the blank sheet 100 in the planar direction within the image, based on the image of the blank sheet 100 acquired by the imaging means 25 (step S2).

[0055] Specifically, the correction unit 20, with the blank sheet 100 mounted on the base 21, biases the intake port with negative pressure F2 using the suction mechanism 27 to hold the blank sheet 100 adsorbed to the upper surface of the base 21. The correction unit 20 then uses the imaging means 25 to capture an image of the blank sheet 100 on the base 21, including the measurement target portion near the outer shape portion in the Y direction, using transmitted light from the light source 26. Based on the image, it measures the position and angle of the measurement target portion of the blank sheet 100 in the planar direction and calculates the correction amounts for the X, Y directions and angles in the XY plane to return it to the normal position and angle. The sliding mechanism 24 corrects the position of the base 21 in the Y direction, and the rotation mechanism 23 corrects the angle of the base 21 in the XY plane direction.

[0056] [Box-making unit 30] The box-making unit 30 is a mechanism unit that removes the blank sheet 100 from the correction unit 20, folds multiple wall-like portions 102, 103, 105L, and 105R surrounding the base surface of the blank sheet 100 to form a half-box carton 100A, and transfers the formed half-box carton 100A to the movable means 42 of the transport means 40.

[0057] As shown in Figures 5(a) and 5(b), the robot includes a mandrel 31, a suction part 311, a holding mechanism 32, a robot hand 38, a robot arm 33, support guide members 34 and 37, a roller 35, and a bending plate 36.

[0058] Of these components, the mandrel 31, the suction unit 311, and the holding mechanism 32 constitute the first work head, and the robot arm 33 constitutes the first robot arm.

[0059] The mandrel 31 functions as a mold member for forming a half-box carton 100A by pressing the base surface of the blank sheet 100 and folding multiple wall-like portions 102, 103, 105L, and 105R that surround the base surface 101. It also has a suction portion 311 at its lower end to hold the blank sheet 100 from above. Two mandrels 31 are arranged in each of the X and Y directions, and the total of four mandrels 31 are held by a holding mechanism 32 housed in the planar direction.

[0060] The suction part 311 has an air intake hole on its lower surface. The air intake hole is connected to a vacuum pump or the like (not shown). By applying negative pressure to the air intake hole while the lower surface of the suction part 311 is in contact with the upper surface of the blank sheet 100 mounted on the base 21, the blank sheet 100 can be held in place by suction.

[0061] The robot hand 38 is connected to the tip of the robot arm 33 and is an actuator means that moves in space by the robot arm 33. As the first work head, it holds the holding mechanism 32, the mandrel 31, and the suction part 311.

[0062] The robot arm 33 is installed above a so-called transport path 41, which extends from, for example, the robot body installed on the ceiling of the equipment, and is a ceiling-mounted robot arm suspended from a member located above the robot arm 33 itself. The robot arm 33 is connected to a holding mechanism 32 via a robot hand 38, and a three-axis ceiling-mounted vertical articulated robot arm mechanism can be used, for example, to hold a mandrel 31 and transport it to a predetermined position in a two-dimensional space consisting of the X and Z directions. The robot arm 33 includes a driving means (e.g., a motor) and is driven based on a control signal issued from the control unit 90, and can change the position of the suction part 311 in the X, Y, and Z directions.

[0063] The pair of support guide members 34 are support bases on which both ends of the blank sheet 100 in the X direction are placed when the blank sheet 100 is formed into a half-box carton 100A, and have the function of facilitating the molding of the blank sheet 100 during box formation by rotating in the XZ plane.

[0064] Similarly, the pair of support guide members 37 are support bases on which both ends of the blank sheet 100 in the Y direction are placed when making the box, and have the function of facilitating the molding of the blank sheet 100 during box making by rotating in the YZ plane.

[0065] The folding plates 36 are arranged in pairs in the X direction, flanking the mandrels 31, and function as mold members that bend the blank sheet 100 to form a half-box carton 100A. They are located below the support guide members 34 and 37, and when viewed from above, they are positioned outside the four mandrels 31.

[0066] The roller 35 is located below the support guide members 34 and 37 and above the folding plate 36, and is a rotating roller mechanism for guiding the blank sheet 100 to the inside of the folding plate 36 during box making.

[0067] In the box-making unit 30, the blank sheet 100 is assembled into a half-box carton 100A (step S3).

[0068] Specifically, the box-making unit 30 uses a robot arm 33 to position four mandrels 31 at the corners of the base surface 101 of the blank sheet 100, which is placed on the base 21 of the correction unit 20. The lower surface of the suction part 311 then contacts the upper surface of the blank sheet 100, biasing the intake hole 21a with negative pressure F3, thereby holding the blank sheet 100 by suction.

[0069] Next, the blank sheet 100 is lifted and the robot arm 33 is moved in the X direction (M2) to transport the blank sheet 100 to a position where both ends straddle the pair of support guide members 34(37), thereby placing the blank sheet 100 on the pair of support guide members 34(37). During this transport, the box-making unit 30 transports the blank sheet 100, whose position in the Y direction and angle in the XY plane direction have been corrected by the correction unit 20, from the correction unit 20 to the box-making unit 30 in the X direction, while maintaining the corrected position in the Y direction and angle in the XY plane direction. During this transport in the X direction, the box-making unit 30 corrects the transport distance of the blank sheet 100 in the X direction to the box-making unit 30 based on the X direction correction value calculated based on the image of the blank sheet 100 acquired by the imaging means 25.

[0070] As a result, the blank sheet 100 is transported to the box-making unit 30 with its position and angle corrected based on the X-direction correction value, Y-direction correction value, and XY-plane angle correction value calculated based on the image acquired by the imaging means 25.

[0071] Then, the robot arm 33 is lowered (M3), and the base portion 101 of the blank sheet 100 is pushed downward using the mandrel 31 as a mold until it reaches the upper surface of the transport path 40, thereby folding the multiple wall-like portions 102, 103, 105L, and 105R around the base portion 101 to form a half-box carton 100A.

[0072] Figure 6 is a perspective view showing the formation operation of a half-carton by the carton-making unit 30. As shown in Figure 6, the four mandrels 31 are positioned at the corner portions of the base surface of the blank sheet 100, with their pitches set in the X and Y directions. The mandrels 31 are used as male molds to push the base surface 101 of the blank sheet 100 between a pair of folding plates 36, thereby folding the multiple wall-like portions 102, 103, 105L, and 105R around the base surface 101 to form a half-carton 100A, and the half-carton 100A is placed on the movable means 42 which is stopped at position SP1 on the transport path 40.

[0073] Furthermore, with the half-box carton 100A formed from the blank sheet 100 placed on the movable means 42 on the transport path 41, the negative pressure F3 is released, the robot arm 33 is raised to pull up the mandrel 31, the half-box carton 100A is placed on the movable means 42, and the half-box carton 100A is transported in the Y direction by the transport means 40 and delivered to the next process (T1).

[0074] (Details of the holding mechanism 32) Figure 7(a) is a right side view showing the configuration of the mandrel 31 and the holding mechanism 32 in the box-making unit 30, and (b) is a top view.

[0075] The holding mechanism 32 includes a shaft 325 whose shaft end is inserted through a hole in the mandrel 31 to hold the mandrel 31, a movable bearing 321 that supports the shaft 325 in the central part of the shaft, a connecting shaft 324 that is inserted through a hole in the movable bearing 321 to support the movable bearing 321 so that it can be inserted and removed in the axial direction, and a support column 322 that holds the connecting shaft 324 by inserting it through a hole. The holding mechanism 32 includes, for example, a driving means such as a drive motor, and is driven based on a control signal issued from the control unit 90, and can change the position of the movable bearing 321 in the X direction and the position of the shaft 325 in the Y direction, respectively.

[0076] For example, as shown in Figures 7(a) and 7(b), the movable bearing 321 can be slid outward along the connecting shaft 324, and the mandrel 31, which is located inward in the X direction, can be moved outward.

[0077] Furthermore, by sliding the mandrel 31 outward on the shaft 325 inserted through the movable bearing 321, the mandrel 31, which is located inward in the Y direction, can be moved outward.

[0078] In other words, the holding mechanism 32 allows the distance between the four mandrels 31 to be changed in the X and Y directions.

[0079] This makes it possible, for example, to convert a mandrel 31 that fits the corner portion of the base surface 100S of a small blank sheet into a mandrel 31' that fits the corner portion of the base surface 100L of a large blank sheet.

[0080] As a result, with the packaging device 1, when changing the blank sheet to be made into a box to a different size, the holding mechanism 32 is driven to independently change the spacing between a pair of mandrels 31 in the vertical or depth direction, and by changing the spacing between the four mandrels 31 to any value, it is possible to easily adapt to a blank sheet of any size.

[0081] Therefore, it is possible to reduce the mold change work that was previously required, such as replacing multiple mandrels 31 in the box-making unit 30 with mandrels 31 that are suitable for the blank sheet to be made after the size change, and to provide a packaging device that can easily switch between making boxes for cartons of different sizes.

[0082] Furthermore, after changing the mold, the adjustment of the mandrel 31's position due to the size change can be simplified.

[0083] [Conveying means 40] The conveying means 40 is a linear conveying system that transports goods using a linear conveying method to transport half-box cartons 100A and cartons 100B. The conveying means 40 has a box-making unit 30, a product-filling unit 50, a gluing unit 60, a box-sealing unit 70, and an unloading unit 80 arranged at positions SP1, SP2, SP3, SP4-5, and SP6 on the conveying path 41.

[0084] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the transport means 40 has a transport path 41 and a plurality of movable means 42.

[0085] The transport path 41 is a loop-shaped circulation path composed of the stators of the linear motor.

[0086] The movable means 42 is a carrier means for holding and transporting half-box cartons 100A and cartons 100B on the movable means, and is composed of a movable element of a linear motor that can move along the transport path 41. Based on control signals emitted from the control unit 90, the transport of each of the multiple movable means 42 is controlled independently.

[0087] Based on instructions from the control unit 90, the transport means 40 stops the movable means 42 at positions SP1, SP2, SP3, SP4 and SP5, SP6 on the transport path 41 during each step of the packaging operation shown in Figure 4 in the packaging device 1, namely the box making step (step S3), product filling step (step S4), gluing step (step S5), box sealing step (step S6), and carton unloading step (step S7). Furthermore, the transport means 40 controls the position of each movable means 42 so that it moves to positions SP1, SP2, SP3, SP4 and SP5, SP6 as the process progresses.

[0088] [Product filling unit 50] The product filling unit 50 is a mechanism unit that takes product PR from the input conveyor IC and fills it into half-box cartons 100A. Figures 8(a) and 8(b) are schematic front views illustrating the configuration and operation of the product filling unit 50.

[0089] As shown in Figures 8(a) and 8(b), the product filling unit 50 includes a product suction head 51, a robot hand 52, a robot arm 53, and a robot body 54.

[0090] Of these, the product suction head 51 constitutes a second work head, and the robot arm 53 constitutes a second robot arm.

[0091] The product suction head 51 is equipped with a suction portion 511 on its lower side and has the function of adsorbing and holding the product PR from above.

[0092] The suction unit 511 has a plurality of intake holes 511a on its lower surface. The intake holes are connected to a vacuum pump or the like (not shown). By applying negative pressure to the intake holes while the lower surface of the suction unit 511 is in contact with the upper surface of the product PR placed on the input conveyor IC, the product PR can be adsorbed and held. The plurality of intake holes 511a are arranged to correspond to the position of each of the plurality of product PRs, and the suction unit 511 can adsorb and hold multiple product PRs simultaneously.

[0093] The robot hand 52 is connected to the tip of the robot arm 53 and is an actuator means that moves in space in the XYZ directions by the robot arm 33, and holds the product suction head 51 as a second work head.

[0094] The robot arm 53 is a ceiling-mounted robot arm that is installed above a so-called transport path 41, extending from, for example, the robot body 54 installed on the ceiling of the equipment, and suspended from a member located above the robot arm 53 itself. The robot arm 53 rotatably supports the product suction head 51 via the robot hand 52, and can use a parallel link type robot arm mechanism that can hold the head 51 with the suction part 511 facing downwards and transport it to a predetermined position in a three-dimensional space consisting of the XYZ directions. The robot arm 53 includes a drive means (e.g., a motor) and is driven based on a control signal emitted from the control unit 90, and can change the position of the suction part 511 in the XYZ directions.

[0095] The input conveyor IC is a means of transporting product PR into the process. As shown in Figures 2, 3, and 8(a), the input conveyor IC consists of an upstream conveyor IC1 that transports product PR in a separated state, and a downstream conveyor IC2 that transports multiple product PRs together to the next stage after they have been collected. The upstream conveyor IC1 and the downstream conveyor IC2 may be driven by a belt driven by the rotation of a motor, or they may be driven by a linear motor.

[0096] In the operation of this product filling unit 50, multiple product PRs are taken out all at once from the input conveyor IC and filled into half-box cartons 100A (step S4).

[0097] Specifically, the upstream conveyor IC1 transports the product PR in a separated state to the downstream conveyor IC2 (T21). The downstream conveyor IC2 blocks the product PR supplied from the upstream conveyor IC1 with an upper stopper ST, accumulating a predetermined number of products PR. Once the predetermined number of products PR have accumulated, they are transported together (T22).

[0098] When the movable means 42 on which a half-box carton 100A is placed is stopped at position SP2 on the transport path 41, the product filling unit 50, as shown in Figure 8(a), brings the lower surface of the suction part 511 into contact with the upper surface of a plurality of products PR that are transported together by the downstream conveyor IC2, and biases the intake holes 511a, which are arranged corresponding to the position of each of the plurality of products PR, with negative pressure F4, thereby holding each of the plurality of products PR together by suction and lifting them up from the downstream conveyor IC2.

[0099] Then, as shown in Figure 8(b), the robot arm 53 is moved (M3) with multiple product PRs attached to the product suction head 51 to move the product PRs onto the half-box carton 100A on the movable means 42 which is stopped at position SP2 on the transport path 41, thereby releasing the negative pressure and transferring the multiple product PRs onto the half-box carton 100A.

[0100] [Gluing Unit 60] The gluing unit 60 is a mechanism unit that glues to the inner surface of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A and folds the front flap. Figures 9(a) to (c) are schematic front views illustrating the configuration and operation of the gluing unit 60.

[0101] As shown in Figures 9(a) to (c), the gluing unit 60 has folding plates 63 and 64, a frame 62, and support columns 61.

[0102] The frame 63 is fixed to the support column 61, defining the spatial positions of the folded plates 63 and 64 and holding them in place.

[0103] The folding plate 63 is configured to be movable in the horizontal direction (Y direction). Its tip 63a is configured to be the same width as the front flap 109, and it has a hole near the tip 63a for supplying adhesive PE. The folding plate 63 has the function of assisting the folding of the front flap 109 by bringing its tip 63a into contact with the folding line at the base of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A, and also applying adhesive PE to the inner surface of the front flap 109 by bringing its tip 63a into contact with the inner surface of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A.

[0104] The folding plate 64 is held at the tip 62a of the frame 63, with a tip 64a having an inclined pressing surface portion the same width as the front flap 109, and is movable in an oblique direction within the XZ plane (from the upper right to the lower left in Figure 9(b)). By bringing the tip 64a into contact with the outer surface of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A, it has the function of folding the front flap 109 inward from the base folding line.

[0105] The folded plates 63 and 64 include a driving means (e.g., a motor) and are driven based on a control signal emitted from the control unit 90.

[0106] In this gluing unit 60, the gluing is applied to the inner surface of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A, and the front flap is folded (step S5).

[0107] Specifically, as shown in Figure 9(a), first, with the movable means 42 on which the carton 100B containing the product PR is placed stopped at position SP3 on the transport path 41, the folding plates 63 and 64 are stationary at a position spaced apart from the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A.

[0108] Next, as shown in Figure 9(b), the folded plate 63 is extended to the right of the paper in Figure 9(b) (M4), so that its tip 63a comes into contact with the fold line at the base of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A, and the vicinity of the tip 63a comes into contact with the inner surface of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A, thereby applying adhesive PE to the inner surface of the front flap 109.

[0109] Simultaneously, the folding plate 64 extends (M5) so that it can move in the lower left direction in Figure 9(b), and its tip portion 64a comes into contact with the outer surface of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A, thereby sandwiching the front flap 109 between the folding plate 63 and the folding plate 64, and folding the front flap 109 inward from the base folding line.

[0110] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 9(c), the folding plate 63 is moved to the left side of Figure 9(c), and the folding plate 64 is moved to the upper right side of Figure 9(c) (M6, 7), thereby separating them from the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A.

[0111] As a result of the above operations, the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A is folded inward with adhesive PE attached to its inner surface.

[0112] [Sealing Unit 70] The sealing unit 70 is a mechanism unit that seals the lid 104 of the half-carton 100A to form a carton 100B containing the product. Figures 10(a) and 11(a) are front views showing the configuration and operation of the sealing unit 70, while Figures 10(b) and 11(b) are top views.

[0113] The sealing unit 70 includes a head 71, a robot hand 72, a robot arm 73, and a robot body 74.

[0114] Of these, head 71 constitutes a third work head, and robot arm 73 constitutes a third robot arm.

[0115] The head 71 is equipped with a plate-shaped pressing plate 711 that extends downward from the lower surface of the head 71, and functions as a work head that presses the outer surface of the lid 104 of the half-box carton 100A from above to close the lid 104 and seal the half-box carton 100A.

[0116] As shown in Figures 10(a) and 11(a), the head 71 is provided with a press plate 711C whose position is restricted to press against the lid portion 104 of the half-box carton 100A. Furthermore, the conveying means 40 for the press plate 711C may also be provided with press plates 711L and 711R on both sides in the conveying direction, whose positions are restricted to press against the lid portions 108L and 108R of the half-box carton 100A.

[0117] Thus, in this example, for one half-box carton 100A, three push plates 711L, 711C, and 711R (sometimes collectively referred to as "push plate 711") are provided in the conveying direction of the conveying means 40.

[0118] In this example, the head 71 is equipped with two sets of push plates 711L, 711C, and 711R in the conveying direction of the conveying means 40, so that two half-box cartons 100A can be sealed simultaneously.

[0119] The robot hand 72 is an actuator means connected to the tip of the robot arm 73 and moved in two-dimensional space in the XZ direction by the robot arm 73, and holds the head 71 as a third work head.

[0120] The robot arm 73 is installed above a so-called transport path 41, which extends from, for example, the robot body 74 installed on the ceiling of the equipment, and is a ceiling-mounted robot arm suspended from a member located above the robot arm 73 itself. The robot arm 73 rotatably supports the head 71 via the robot hand 72, and can use a parallel link type robot arm mechanism that can, for example, hold the head 71 with the push plate 711 facing downwards and transport it to a predetermined position in a two-dimensional space consisting of the X and Z directions. The robot arm 73 also includes a drive means (e.g., a motor) and is driven based on a control signal issued from the control unit 90, and can change the position of the push plate 711 in the X, Y, and Z directions.

[0121] In the operation of this sealing unit 70, the lid 104 of the half-carton 100A is sealed to form a carton 100B containing the product (step S6).

[0122] The sealing unit 70 operates when the preceding movable means 42, on which a half-carton 100A containing product PR is placed at position SP4 of the transport path 41, has stopped, and the following movable means 42, on which another half-carton 100A containing product PR is placed at position SP5, has stopped.

[0123] First, as shown in Figures 10(a) and 10(b), in the sealing unit 70, the head 71 is stationary in the home position in the initial state, and the push plate 711 is separated from the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A.

[0124] Next, as shown in Figures 11(a) and 11(b), the sealing unit 70 moves the robot arm 73 to move the head 71 towards the lower right of the paper in Figures 11(a) and 11(b) (M8), and the push plate 711C presses the outer surface of the lid 104 of the half-box carton 100A from above to close the lid 104.

[0125] At this time, the tip 711b of the push plate 711C presses the outer surface of the front flap 109 of the half-box carton 100A from above, pressing the inner surface of the front flap 109, to which adhesive PE has been applied, against the outer surface of the front wall portion 102.

[0126] At the same time, the sealing unit 70 performs the operation of closing the lids 108L and 108R of the half-box carton 100A by pressing the outer surfaces of the lids 108L and 108R of the half-box carton 100A from above with the push plates 711L and 711R using the tip portion 711a.

[0127] Through the above actions, the lids 104, 108L, and 108R of the half-box carton 100A are folded at their base, and a sealing operation is performed in which the inner surface of the front flap 109 and the outer surface of the front wall 102 are bonded together, thereby forming carton 100B containing the product.

[0128] (Regarding the movable mechanism of the push plate member of head 71) The head 71 may incorporate a pair of movable members 711L and 711R that can be spaced differently in the conveying direction, and a support mechanism 712, and may be configured to adjust the spacing between the movable push plates 711L and 711R according to the size of the half-box carton 100A.

[0129] The movable mechanism of the push plate member is driven based on a control signal emitted from the control unit 90, and the head 71, with its internal support mechanism 712, can easily change the spacing between the movable members 711L and 711R in the transport direction of the transport means 40 based on the operation input.

[0130] Figures 12(a) and 12(b) are schematic front views illustrating the mold change operation by the sealing unit 70.

[0131] For example, as shown in Figure 12(a), by simply changing the control signal, it is possible to reduce the distance W1 between the pair of movable members 711L and 711R to fit a small half-box carton 100A, or to increase the distance W2 between the pair of movable members 711L and 711R to fit a large half-box carton 100A.

[0132] As a result, with the packaging device 1, when changing the size of the blank sheet to be used for box making, it is possible to easily adapt it to any size blank sheet simply by driving the support mechanism 712 to change the distance between the pair of movable members 711L and 711R.

[0133] Therefore, it is possible to reduce the mold change work that was previously required, such as replacing a pair of movable members 711L and 711R in the sealing unit 70 with ones that fit the blank sheet to be made after the size change, and to provide a packaging device that can easily switch between making cartons of different sizes.

[0134] Furthermore, after the mold change, the position adjustment of the movable push plates 711L and 711R due to the size change can be simplified.

[0135] [Dispatch Unit 80] The discharge unit 80 is a mechanism unit that discharges the carton 100B containing the product PR from the transport means 40 to the discharge conveyor OC. Figures 13(a) and 13(b) are schematic front views illustrating the configuration and operation of the discharge unit 80.

[0136] As shown in Figures 13(a) and 13(b), the unloading unit 80 includes a carton suction head 81, a robot hand 82, a robot arm 83, and a robot body 84.

[0137] Of these, the carton suction head 81 constitutes the fourth work head, and the robot arm 83 constitutes the fourth robot arm.

[0138] The carton suction head 81 is equipped with a suction part 811 on its lower side and has the function of holding the carton 100B containing the product PR from above by suction.

[0139] The suction part 811 has an air intake hole on its lower surface. The air intake hole is connected to a vacuum pump or the like (not shown). By applying negative pressure to the air intake hole while the lower surface of the suction part 811 is in contact with the upper surface of the carton 100B mounted on the movable means 42, the carton 100B can be held in place by suction.

[0140] The robot hand 82 is an actuator means connected to the tip of the robot arm 83 and moved in two-dimensional space in the YZ direction by the robot arm 83, and holds the carton suction head 81 as a fourth work head.

[0141] The robot arm 83 is installed above a so-called transport path 41, which extends from, for example, the robot body 84 installed on the ceiling of the equipment, and is a ceiling-mounted robot arm suspended from a member located above the robot arm 83 itself. The robot arm 83 rotatably supports the carton suction head 81 via the robot hand 82, and a three-axis ceiling-mounted vertical articulated robot arm mechanism can be used that can hold the carton suction head 81 with the suction part 811 facing downwards and transport it to a predetermined position in a two-dimensional space consisting of the YZ direction. The robot arm 83 includes a drive means (e.g., a motor) and is driven based on a control signal issued from the control unit 90, and can change the position of the suction part 811 in the XYZ direction.

[0142] The discharge conveyor OC is a means of transporting carton 100B out of the process, and may be driven by a motor that transmits power to a belt, or it may be driven by a linear motor.

[0143] In the operation of this unloading unit 80, the carton 100B is removed from the transport means 40 and unloaded (step S7).

[0144] Specifically, when the movable means 42, on which the carton 100B containing the product PR is placed, is stopped at position SP6 of the transport path 41, the unloading unit 80 holds the carton 100B by adhering the suction portion 811 of the carton suction head 81 to the upper surface of the carton 100B and applying negative pressure F5 to the intake hole, as shown in Figure 13(a).

[0145] Then, as shown in Figure 13(b), the robot arm 83 is moved (M9) with the carton 100B held in suction by the carton suction head 81 to move the carton 100B onto the discharge conveyor OC of the correction unit 20 to release the negative pressure, and the carton 100B is placed on the discharge conveyor OC and discharged by the discharge conveyor OC (T6).

[0146] [Control Unit 90] The control unit 90 is connected to the supply unit 10, correction unit 20, box-making unit 30, transport path 40, product filling unit 5, gluing unit 60, and sealing unit 70, and outputs control signals to control the movement of the movable means 42 on the transport path 41 and the operation of each unit.

[0147] The control unit 90 is implemented as a computer, for example, equipped with a general-purpose CPU (Central Processing Unit), RAM (Random Access Memory), and a program to be executed on them. The control unit 90 reads a control program for the packaging device 1 from a storage device or the like into RAM and executes it, thereby controlling each unit constituting the packaging device 1 during changes in direction so that they operate in coordination with each other, and thus realizing the functions of the packaging device 1.

[0148] According to the packaging device 1 having the above configuration, a blank sheet 100 is taken from the sheet stack 100x and supplied to the correction unit 20, the position and / or angle of the blank sheet 100 in the planar direction is corrected, a half-box carton 100A is formed, and the half-box carton 100A is transported along the transport path 40. Furthermore, the product PR is filled into the half-box carton 100A, the lid of the half-box carton 100A is sealed, and the transport unit 80 performs the operation of transporting the carton 100B containing the product PR outside the transport means 40.

[0149] <Summary> As described above, the packaging apparatus 1 according to the embodiment comprises, in this order, a transport path 41, a movable means 42 that can move along the transport path 41, a box-making unit 30 that forms a half-box carton 100A from a blank sheet 100 and places it on the movable means 42 along the transport path 41, a product filling unit 50 that fills the half-box carton 100A with product PR, a sealing unit 70 that seals the half-box carton 100A to form a carton 100B containing product PR, and an unloading unit 80 that unloads the carton 100B from the movable means 42, and the box-making unit 30 comprises a first work head 31 and a first work head The product filling unit 50 is characterized by having a first robot arm 33 installed above the transport path 41 that supports the head 31, a second robot arm 53 installed above the transport path 41 that supports the second work head 51, a third work head 71 and a third robot arm 73 installed above the transport path 41 that supports the third work head 71, and an unloading unit 80 is characterized by having a fourth work head 81 and a fourth robot arm 83 installed above the transport path 41 that supports the fourth work head 81.

[0150] With this configuration, the packaging device 1 can avoid the concentration of machinery and equipment on the manufacturing line and reduce the density of machinery and equipment around the conveying path of the manufacturing line in the box-making and packaging process, in which a half-box carton 100A is made from a blank sheet 100, filled with product PR, and then sealed. This makes it possible to provide a packaging device that can improve workability during equipment maintenance.

[0151] Furthermore, the packaging device 1 can improve production efficiency by reducing the need to replace or adjust process equipment when changing models, which was previously required.

[0152] Specifically, this technology can mitigate the problems that arose in conventional packaging equipment because each process used equipment mechanisms that primarily involved linear movements, such as XY tables and XYZ stages.

[0153] In other words, it is possible to reduce issues such as the complexity of the equipment mechanisms in each unit, poor visibility due to the dense concentration of machinery around the transport paths of the manufacturing line, and poor workability during equipment maintenance.

[0154] Furthermore, when changing molds, such as when changing the size or model of the 100B carton, equipment replacement is required to adapt the process equipment to the size change, or equipment adjustments are made to change the size of the process equipment. This reduces the burden of work and low production efficiency that occur when changing molds.

[0155] In another embodiment, in any of the embodiments described above, the box-making unit 30 moves the first robot arm 33 to fold the blank sheet 100 with the first work head 31 to form a half-box carton 100A, the product-filling unit 50 moves the second robot arm 53 to fill the half-box carton 100A mounted on the movable means 42 with the second work head 51, the sealing unit 70 seals the lid 104 of the half-box carton 100A on which the product PR is mounted with the third work head 71 to form a carton 100B containing the product PR, and the unloading unit 80 moves the fourth robot arm 83 to unload the carton 100B mounted on the movable means 42 with the fourth work head 81.

[0156] This configuration allows for a reduction in the density of machinery and equipment in a manufacturing line that performs a series of process operations, from forming a half-carton 100A from a blank sheet 100, filling the product PR, sealing the carton, and unloading the carton 100B, by comprising a supply unit 10, a carton-making unit 30, a product-filling unit 50, a carton-sealing unit 70, and an unloading unit 80.

[0157] In another embodiment, the embodiment described in any of the above may further include a supply unit 10 for supplying blank sheets 100, wherein the supply unit 10 includes a fifth work head 11 and a fifth robot arm 13 that supports the fifth work head 11 and is installed above the transport path 41, and the fifth work head 11 takes blank sheets 100 from the sheet stack 100x and supplies them to the box-making unit 30.

[0158] With this configuration, a supply unit 10 can be realized that takes blank sheets 100 one by one from a sheet stack 100x in which multiple blank sheets 100 are stacked flat, and supplies them to the correction unit 20.

[0159] In another embodiment, in any of the embodiments described above, the first work head 31 may have a mandrel 31 for bending the blank sheet 100, the second work head 51 may have a product suction head 51 for adsorbing and filling the product PR into the half carton 100A, the third work head 71 may have a pressing plate 711 for contacting and sealing the lid 104 of the half carton 100A, the fourth work head 81 may have a carton suction head 81 for adsorbing and unloading the carton 100B, and the fifth work head 11 may have a sheet suction head 11 for adsorbing the blank carton 100 and removing it from the sheet stack 100x.

[0160] With this configuration, a packaging device 1 can be realized that consists of first to fifth workheads 31, 51, 71, 81, and 11, performing a series of process operations consisting of taking out a blank sheet 100, forming a half-box carton 100A, filling the product PR, sealing the box, and unloading the carton 100B.

[0161] In another embodiment, the first work head 31 may be configured to have a holding mechanism 32 that can make the spacing of the mandrel 31 in the blank sheet 100 in the XY plane vertical or horizontal direction different.

[0162] This configuration reduces the need for mold changes, such as replacing multiple mandrels 31 in the box-making unit 30 with mandrels 31 that match the blank sheet to be made after the size change, and provides a box-making apparatus that can easily switch between making cartons of different sizes. In addition, it simplifies the adjustment of the position of the mandrels 31 after the size change.

[0163] In another embodiment, the push plate 711 may include a pair of movable members 711L and 711R, and the third work head 71 may have a support mechanism 712 that can make the spacing between members 711L and 711R in the vertical or horizontal direction in the XY plane of the blank sheet 100 different.

[0164] This configuration reduces the need for mold changes, such as replacing the pair of movable members 711L and 711R in the sealing unit 70 with those that fit the blank sheet to be manufactured after the size change, and provides a packaging device that can easily switch between manufacturing cartons of different sizes. In addition, it simplifies the adjustment of the positions of the movable pressing plates 711L and 711R after the size change.

[0165] ≪Variations≫ Although a packaging device according to an embodiment has been described, this disclosure is not limited in any way to the above-described embodiment, except for its essential characteristic components. For example, forms obtained by applying various modifications to the embodiment that a person skilled in the art can conceive of, and forms realized by arbitrarily combining the components and functions of each embodiment without departing from the spirit of the present invention are also included in this disclosure. Below, a modification will be described as an example of such a form. (1) In the above embodiment, a gluing unit 60 is provided between the product filling unit 50 and the sealing unit 70, which glues to the inner surface of the front flap 109 of the half carton 100A and folds the front flap.

[0166] However, the order of the gluing process on the half-box carton 100A may be changed as appropriate. For example, the gluing unit 60 that applies glue to a predetermined portion of the half-box carton 100A may be provided between the box-making unit 30 and the product-filling unit 50, or the box-making unit 30 or the sealing unit 70 may be configured to perform the gluing operation on a predetermined portion of the half-box carton 100A. (2) In the above embodiment, a correction unit 20 is provided between the supply unit 10 and the box-making unit 30 to correct the position and / or angle of the blank sheet in the planar direction.

[0167] However, the correction unit 20 is a unit that can reduce the variation in the position of the blank sheet when it is supplied to the box-making unit, and improve the molding accuracy of the carton, especially when the area of ​​the blank sheet is large due to the increase in carton size, or when the blank sheet has a large degree of warping or undulation. For this reason, the correction unit 20 may be omitted as appropriate, depending on the size and shape of the blank sheet 100.

[0168] ≪Additional Information≫ The embodiments described above all represent preferred specific examples of the present invention. The numerical values, shapes, materials, components, arrangement and connection configurations of components, processes, and order of processes shown in the embodiments are examples only and are not intended to limit the present invention. Furthermore, components in the embodiments that are not described in the independent claims representing the highest-level concept of the present invention are described as any components that constitute a more preferred form.

[0169] Furthermore, the order in which the above methods are performed is illustrative for the purpose of specifically illustrating the present invention, and may be performed in a different order. Also, some of the above methods may be performed simultaneously (in parallel) with other methods.

[0170] Furthermore, for the sake of easier understanding of the invention, the scale of the components shown in the figures of each embodiment described above may differ from that of the actual components. Moreover, the present invention is not limited by the descriptions of each embodiment described above, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0171] Furthermore, at least some of the functions of each embodiment and its modified form may be combined. [Industrial applicability]

[0172] A packaging device according to one aspect of this disclosure can be used as a packaging device for transporting articles such as products, parts, workpieces, packaging, and various containers in a manufacturing line or the like. It can also be suitably used as a packaging device for transporting packaged goods and packaging materials in various logistics operations. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0173] 1 Packaging equipment 10 supply units 11. Sheet suction head (5th work head) 12. Lifting arm (5th work head) 13. Horizontal movable arm (5th robotic arm) 14 Guide rail (5th robot arm) 20 Correction Units 21 Foundation 22 Support member 23 Rotation mechanism 24 Movable mechanism 25 Imaging means 26 light source 27 Suction mechanism 30 Box-making units 31 Mandrel (First Workhead) 311 Suction part (first work head) 32 Holding mechanism (first work head) 321 Movable bearing 322 Post 324 Connecting shaft 325 shaft 33. Robotic Arm (First Robotic Arm) 34, 37 Support guide members 35 Laura 36 Folding plate 38 Robot Hand 40 Conveying means 41 Conveyor path 42 Movable means 50 product filling units 51. Product suction head (second work head) 511 Suction section (second work head) 52 Robot Hand 53. Robotic Arm (Second Robotic Arm) 54 Robot body 60 gluing units 61 Pillar 62 frames 63 Folding plate 64 Folding plate 70 sealing units 71 Head (Third work head) 711 Push plate (third workhead) 712 Support mechanism (third work head) 72 Robot Hand 73. Robotic Arm (Third Robotic Arm) 74 Robot body 80 Product Dispatch Units 81. Carton suction head (fourth work head) 811 Suction section (fourth work head) 82 Robot Hand 83. Robotic Arm (Fourth Robotic Arm) 84 Robot body 90 Control Unit 100 Blank Sheets 100x Sheet Stack 100A Half Box Carton 100B Carton

Claims

[Claim 1] Conveyor path and A movable means that can move along the transport path, Along the aforementioned transport path, A box-making unit that forms a half-box carton from a blank sheet and places it on the movable means, A product filling unit for filling the aforementioned half-box carton with products, A sealing unit that seals the aforementioned half-box carton to form a carton containing the product, The system comprises, in that order, an unloading unit for unloading the carton from the movable means, The sealing unit comprises a work head, a robot arm installed above the transport path that supports the work head, and a pressing plate that contacts and seals the lid of a half-box carton. The aforementioned push plate includes a pair of movable members, The work head has a support mechanism that allows for variable spacing between the movable members in the vertical or horizontal direction in the planar direction of the blank sheet. packaging equipment.

Images