Automated raw material input device

Abstract

The present invention relates to an automated raw material feeding device, and provides an automated raw material feeding device including a hopper into which raw materials stored inside a bag are fed, a cutter arranged above the hopper's feeding opening for cutting the bottom of the bag, a box arranged above the hopper for preventing dust from diffusing outward, a guide arranged above the box for guiding the entry of the bag, and a pusher installed on the guide for hitting the bag by variable tilting to discharge the raw materials.

Description

Technical Field

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[0005]

[0001] The present invention relates to an automatic raw material input device.

Background Art

[0002] A packaging bag (Container Bag) is a type of packaging container that stores raw materials such as electrode active materials (active electrode materials) of a battery. Such a packaging bag may be a flexible container bag that is flexible and deformable, and the flexible container bag may sometimes be abbreviated as a flecon bag (Flecon Bag).

[0003] Conventionally, after opening the discharge part of the flecon bag while visually checking, it was attached to a hopper, and when the discharge was not smooth due to the formation of lumps of raw materials (such as active materials), the operator would shake the bag or tap it with a hammer (Hammer) to eliminate the lumps and continue discharging. Thus, conventionally, after the operator manually opened the lower part of the bag and attached it to the hopper, the raw materials were input.

[0004] Therefore, a solution is needed to discharge the raw materials (such as active materials) inside the flecon without opening the discharge part of the flecon bag, and a measure is needed to enable continuous discharge without human intervention when the raw materials (such as active materials) inside the flecon bag are solidified and the discharge is not smooth.

Summary of the Invention

[0007] In this invention, the cutter is movable up and down by an air cylinder.

[0008] In this invention, the cutter may include a pyramid-shaped knife and a mesh positioned below the knife for filtering out foreign matter.

[0009] In this invention, the upper part of the box may be sealed with a guide, and the lower part of the box may be sealed with a hopper inlet.

[0010] In the present invention, the box can be transparent and have a sealed structure.

[0011] In this invention, the box may be a glove box in which a glove is fitted.

[0012] In the present invention, the box may include a main box equipped with a glove and a scrap discharge door, and a scrap box positioned on the side of the main box.

[0013] In the present invention, the guide has a tapered structure that narrows in width towards the bottom, and the inclination angle and size of the guide can be set so that the side of the bag contacts the inner surface of the guide first.

[0014] In the present invention, the pusher may include at least one pair of cylinders positioned outside the guide, a rod mounted on the cylinder so as to be able to move forward and backward horizontally, a link connected to the rod, and a tilting member connected to the link, positioned inside the guide, with its lower end rotatably fixed to the guide, and which is variably tilted by the forward and backward movement of the link.

[0015] The automated raw material input device according to the present invention may further include a rail positioned at a constant height in the horizontal direction, and a hanger mounted on the rail that is capable of reciprocating horizontally and allows a bag mounted at its lower end to reciprocate vertically.

[0016] In the present invention, the hanger may include an upper hanger mounted on a rail, a lower hanger positioned below the upper hanger, a wire installed between the upper and lower hangers, and a hook attached to the lower hanger for hanging a bag.

[0017] In the present invention, a location hole may be formed in either the upper hanger or the lower hanger, and a location pin may be formed in the other hanger to be inserted into the location hole.

[0018] In the present invention, the hooks consist of at least one pair, and the pair of hooks grip the strap-shaped sling bar of the bag at two points, but can be spaced apart to minimize the height of the bag.

[0019] In the present invention, the hanger can further include load cells installed on both the left and right sides of the lower hanger.

[0020] In the present invention, the hanger can sense the weight deviation by the load cells on both the left and right sides to correct the inclination of the bag, and can adjust the height of the bag according to the weight change sensed by the load cells on both the left and right sides.

Advantages of the Invention

[0021] The raw material input automation device according to the present invention can reduce the working hours by automatically inputting raw materials into the hopper. In addition, it can reduce the risk of safety accidents caused by operator handling of mixer active substances, which are harmful substances with high load (for example, 1 ton).

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0022] [Figure 1] It is a view showing the upper part of the raw material input automation device according to the present invention. [Figure 2] It is a view showing the lower part of the raw material input automation device according to the present invention. [Figure 3] It is a view showing the variable tilting pusher according to the present invention. [Figure 4] It is a view showing the variable tilting pusher according to the present invention. [Figure 5] It is a view showing the cutter according to the present invention. [Figure 6] It is a view showing the glove box according to the present invention. [Figure 7] It is a view showing the operation process of the raw material input automation device according to the present invention. [Figure 8] It is a view showing the operation process of the raw material input automation device according to the present invention. [Figure 9] It is a view showing the operation process of the raw material input automation device according to the present invention. [Figure 10] It is a view showing the operation process of the raw material input automation device according to the present invention. [Figure 11] This figure shows the operation process of the automated raw material input device according to the present invention. [Figure 12] This figure shows the operation process of the automated raw material input device according to the present invention. [Figure 13] This figure shows the operation process of the automated raw material input device according to the present invention. [Figure 14] This figure shows the operation process of the automated raw material input device according to the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0023] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings.

[0024] The present invention relates to a device for automatically dispensing raw materials contained in a bag 10 into a hopper 80, wherein the bag 10 is a large bag (Big Bag) for containing raw materials, and may be, for example, a flexible container bag (FIBC) that is flexible and deformable. The top of the bag 10 may be equipped with one or more string-shaped sling bars 11 so that it can be hung on the hooks 34 of a hanger 30, and the bottom of the bag 10 may be equipped with an openable and closable raw material discharge section. The bag 10 may be composed of an outer packaging material and an inner packaging material. The raw materials are not particularly limited and may be, for example, mixer process active materials (active materials), and more specifically, active materials for battery electrodes (negative electrode, positive electrode). The raw materials may be contained in the bag 10 in powder or particle form.

[0025] Figure 1 shows the upper side of the automated raw material feeding device according to the present invention, and Figure 2 shows the lower side of the automated raw material feeding device according to the present invention. Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the automated raw material feeding device according to the present invention may consist of a rail 20, a hanger 30, a guide 40, a pusher 50, a cutter 60, a box 70, a hopper 80, and the like.

[0026] The rail 20 is for moving the hanger 30 and is positioned horizontally at a certain height (e.g., 3-10 m) to realize an OHT (Overhead Hoist Transfer). The rail 20 can be fixed or supported by fixing or supporting means suitable for the ceiling, floor, etc. The shape and size of the rail 20 are not particularly limited and can be set appropriately.

[0027] The hanger 30 (also called a carrier) is for moving the bag 10 and is mounted on the rail 20 so as to be able to move back and forth horizontally along the rail 20, and the bag 10 mounted on its lower end can also be moved back and forth vertically.

[0028] The horizontal and vertical reciprocating motion of the hanger 30 can be achieved by conventional mechanisms that convert the rotational motion of a motor into linear motion, such as pulleys and belts, gears and chains, cylinders and pistons, racks and pinions, reels and wires, etc., from which the appropriate mechanism may be selected as needed.

[0029] The hanger 30 may consist of an upper hanger 31, a lower hanger 32, a wire 33, a hook 34, a location hole 35, a location pin 36, a load cell 37, and the like.

[0030] The upper hanger 31 is mounted below the rail 20 and may be made of a plate-like shape (such as a polygonal plate like a square plate, a circular plate, or an elliptical plate). The lower hanger 32 is positioned below the upper hanger 31 and may be made of the same plate-like shape as the upper hanger 31.

[0031] The wire 33 is installed between the upper hanger 31 and the lower hanger 32, and can connect them. The upper end of the wire 33 can be fixed to a roller or reel installed on the upper hanger 31 or the rail 20, and the lower end of the wire 33 can be fixed to the lower hanger 32. The wire 33 can be wound up and unwound through the roller or reel, and the lower hanger 32 can be moved back and forth in the vertical direction.

[0032] The hooks 34 are attached to the lower hanger 32 and are configured in a ring shape so that the bag 10 can be hung on them. The hooks 34 consist of at least one pair (preferably two pairs or more), and a pair of hooks 34 grip the strap-shaped sling bar 11 of the bag 10 at two points, but can be spaced apart to minimize the height of the bag 10 and the sling bar 11 (application of a wide double hook).

[0033] When the hook 34 is at its highest position, that is, when the lower hanger 32 rises and is in close contact with the upper hanger 31, the height between the upper end of the rail 20 and the lower end of the hook 34 may be, for example, a maximum of 1.2m. Including the sling bar 11 attached to the hook 34, the height of the bag 10 may be, for example, 1.8m. The height of the working space between the lower end of the bag 10 and the upper end of the hopper 80 may be, for example, 0.5m. The height between the lower end of the hook 34 at its highest position and the upper end of the hopper 80 may be, for example, a maximum of 2.3m. Thus, the stack height may be insufficient, and a solution to the stack height shortage is needed.

[0034] To solve the problem of insufficient height, the height of the bag 10 can be minimized by maximizing the two-point gripping distance for each sling bar. When the sling bar 11 is gripped at one point, the sling bar 11 hangs down and hooks onto the hook 34, adding to the height of the sling bar 11 and increasing the height of the bag 10. When the sling bar 11 is gripped at two points, the height of the sling bar 11 decreases while the height of the bag 10 decreases. In particular, by maximizing the distance (spacing) between the pair of hooks 34, which corresponds to the gripping distance when gripping at two points, the height of the bag 10 can be minimized, and in this case, the upper end of the bag 10 can be in close contact with the hook 34 or nearly in close contact.

[0035] Furthermore, the insufficient height can be solved by making the running rail 20 and hanger 30 more compact. Specifically, when the upper hanger 31 and the lower hanger 32 are docked, the hook 34 is at its highest position, and at this time, it is preferable to design the height between the upper end of the rail 20 and the lower end of the hook 34 to be a maximum of 1.2m.

[0036] The location hole 35 is formed in either the upper hanger 31 or the lower hanger 32, and the location pin 36, which is inserted into the location hole 35, may be formed in the other. In Figure 1, the location hole 35 is formed in the upper hanger 31 and the location pin 36 is formed in the lower hanger 32, but the opposite is also possible. The location hole 35 may be formed in the shape of a groove or hole on the lower surface of the upper hanger 31, and the location pin 36 may be formed in the shape of a projection on the upper surface of the lower hanger 32.

[0037] Location holes 35 may be formed in at least one pair on both sides of the upper hanger 31, and similarly, location pins 36 may be formed in at least one pair on both sides of the lower hanger 32. The location holes 35 and location pins 36 may have corresponding shapes and sizes. As the bag 10 moves upward along the lower hanger 32 and hook 34, the location holes 35 and location pins 36 may dock together as the upper hanger 31 and lower hanger 32 come into close contact.

[0038] While the bag 10 may sway from side to side when moved from side to side, this problem can be solved or minimized by docking the location hole 35 and location pin 36, and by gripping the sling bar 11 at two points.

[0039] The hanger 30 may further include a scissor frame (not shown). The scissor frame is installed between the upper hanger 31 and the lower hanger 32 and is expandable (deformable) in the vertical (height) direction. The upper end of the scissor frame may be fixed to the upper hanger 31, and the lower end of the scissor frame may be fixed to the lower hanger 32. When the bag 10 is lowered, the height of the scissor frame may increase, and when the bag 10 is raised, the height of the scissor frame may decrease. The scissor frame may be expanded or contracted passively by the active movement of the wire 33.

[0040] Even when the bag 10 moves up and down, the problem of the bag 10 swaying from side to side can occur. However, by applying a caesar frame between the upper hanger 31 and the lower hanger 32, the problem of the bag 10 swaying from side to side when the bag 10 moves up and down can be solved or minimized.

[0041] When the active material is added, the bag 10 may tilt to one side. Also, the length of the bag 10 may increase when the active material is added. To solve the problems of the bag 10 tilting and length increase, load cells 37 can be installed on both the left and right sides of the lower hanger 32. At least one pair of load cells 37 may be formed on both sides of the lower hanger 32, and the weight can be measured in real time. The load cells 37 on both sides can sense the weight deviation and correct the tilt of the bag 10, and the height of the bag 10 can be adjusted according to the weight change sensed by the load cells 37 on both sides.

[0042] For example, if the bag 10 tilts downward to the right, the load cell 37 senses the weight deviation and adjusts the displacement of the right wire 33, thereby correcting the tilt of the bag 10 and aligning it. Also, if the length of the bag 10 increases, the load cell 37 senses the weight change and the wire 33 rises, thereby offsetting and correcting the increase in the length of the bag 10.

[0043] Referring to Figures 2 and 3, the guide 40 is for guiding the bag 10 as it descends toward the hopper 80 by the hanger 30, and may be positioned above the box 70 or below the hanger 30, with the lower end of the guide 40 and the upper end of the box 70 being in close contact. The guide 40 may have a tapered structure that narrows downwards, and may have, for example, an inverted frustum (frustum of a pyramidal pyramid, frustum of a cone, etc.) shape with an open interior. The upper and lower parts of the guide 40 may be open for the entry of the bag 10 and the cutter 60, respectively. Preferably, the guide 40 may be a frustum of a square pyramid having four sides, i.e., a four-sided guide. A four-sided guide can increase the fluidity of the raw material (powder) inside the bag 10 and facilitate discharge.

[0044] The inclination angle and size of the guide 40 can be set so that the side of the bag 10 contacts the inner surface of the guide 40 first. The inclination angle can mean the angle (acute angle) made between a virtual horizontal plane and the inclined surface (side) of the guide 40. The inclination angle can be, for example, 20 to 70 degrees, 30 to 60 degrees, or 40 to 50 degrees. In this way, the angle and size of the guide 40 can be designed so that the side of the bag 10 contacts the surface of the guide 40 first and does not obstruct cutting when the bag 10 is lowered and cutting. Preferably, the inclination angle of the guide 40 can be about 45 degrees.

[0045] Referring to Figures 3 and 4, the pusher 50 is used to tap the bag 10 to discharge the raw material, and can smoothly discharge the raw material while eliminating the clumping phenomenon of the raw material inside the bag 10. In this way, the bag 10 can be massaged by the pusher 50 to eliminate clumping of the raw material (active material) and increase the discharge speed. The pusher 50 may be a variable tilting pusher that taps the bag 10 by variable tilting. As the shape of the bag 10 gradually changes due to the discharge of the raw material (powder), the pusher angle of the variable tilting pusher 50 can be variably tilted to match the changing shape of the bag 10. The pusher 50 may consist of at least one pair, preferably two pairs, that is, it may be a four-sided variable tilting pusher installed on each of the four sides of the four-sided guide 40. The pusher 50 may be installed horizontally on the side of the guide 40. A pair of pushers 50 may be arranged symmetrically around the guide 40 at the same height, for example, so as to face each other on opposite sides at a 180-degree interval.

[0046] The pusher 50 may consist of a cylinder 51, a rod 52, a link 53, a tilting member 54, and the like. The cylinder 51 may be positioned horizontally outside the guide 40 and may be an air cylinder. The rod 52 may be mounted on the cylinder 51 so as to be able to move forward and backward horizontally. The link 53 may be connected to the rod 52 and be able to move forward and backward horizontally by the rod 52, and may be positioned between the guide 40 and the cylinder 51. The tilting member 54 may be connected to the link 53 and may be positioned inside the guide 40, with its lower end rotatably fixed to the guide 40, and may be variably tilted by the forward and backward movement of the link 53.

[0047] When the pusher 50 is in operation, the rod 52 and link 53 repeatedly reciprocate horizontally, and the tilting member 54 connected to the link 53 can repeatedly strike (hit) the bag 10 by variable tilting. The rod 52 and link 53 can penetrate the guide 40 and enter the interior of the guide 40 during movement. The lower end of the tilting member 54 may be rotatably fixed to the guide 40 through a pivot axis, and as shown in Figure 4, the tilting member 54 can rotate (tilt) inward towards the guide 40 while being in close contact with the inner surface of the guide 40 around the pivot axis of the lower end. The rotation (tilting) angle of the tilting member 54 is the angle between the tilting member 54 and a virtual horizontal plane, and may be, for example, 20 to 180 degrees, 25 to 160 degrees, 30 to 140 degrees, 35 to 120 degrees, 40 to 100 degrees, or 45 to 90 degrees.

[0048] Referring to Figure 2, the cutter 60 is for cutting the bottom of the bag 10 for raw material discharge, and the cutter 60 is positioned above the inlet of the hopper 80, and specifically may be positioned inside the guide 40 or the box 70. The cutter 60 can be raised and lowered (up / down) by an air cylinder or the like, but during cutting it may be raised and positioned inside the guide 40, and after cutting it may be lowered and positioned inside the box 70. The air cylinder may be installed at an appropriate position inside and / or outside the box 70 or the like.

[0049] Specifically, after the cutter 60 is raised by the air cylinder, the bag 10 is lowered by the hanger 30, and the raw material is discharged while the bottom of the bag 10 is cut by the weight of the bag 10. After the discharge of the raw material is complete, the cutter 60 can be lowered. The timing of the raising and lowering of the cutter 60 is not particularly limited; for example, it can be raised before, during, or after the bag 10 is transferred to the hopper 80, and it can be lowered while the raw material is being discharged after cutting, or after the discharge of the raw material is complete.

[0050] Referring to Figure 5, the cutter 60 may include a knife 61 and a mesh 62 positioned below the knife 61, and the knife 61 and mesh 62 may be manufactured as a single unit. The knife 61 is responsible for cutting the bag 10, and the mesh 62 is responsible for filtering out foreign matter generated during cutting the bag 10 and discharge of the raw materials. The material of the knife 61 may be, for example, a cemented carbide. The material of the mesh 62 may be, for example, stainless steel (SUS Mesh), specifically SUS-316. When the cutter 60 is raised and lowered, the knife 61 may rise and lower independently, or both the knife 61 and mesh 62 may rise and lower together.

[0051] The knife 61 may have a suitable shape and size for smooth cutting of the bag 10, an appropriate cutting area, and smooth discharge and passage of raw materials. The knife 61 may have a structure in which a sharp vertex is positioned at the top end for smooth cutting. For this purpose, the knife 61 may be composed of one or more polygonal plates, for example, triangular plates, or various pyramidal shapes, for example, square pyramids. Specifically, the knife 61 may be a pyramid knife having a pyramidal shape.

[0052] According to one embodiment for creating a pyramidal shape, a pyramidal shape can be produced by intersecting two or more triangular plates vertically. For example, as shown in Figure 5, a pyramidal shape can be produced by orthogonally aligning two triangular plates at a 90-degree angle to each other vertically. In this embodiment, the overall outline appears to be a square pyramidal shape, but it is not a pentahedron like an actual pyramid. Rather, it may be a structure in which most of the space excluding the plates within the virtual pyramidal shape is open. With such an open structure, the knife 61 does not obstruct the passage of the raw material, so the raw material can pass through smoothly.

[0053] Referring to Figure 5, the triangular plate may have one or more holes or open areas on the inside, excluding the corners, without any material, for purposes such as saving material. If holes or open areas are formed, the triangular plate may have one or more ribs to supplement structural rigidity. The ribs may be arranged horizontally and / or vertically. Thus, the triangular plate may have multiple holes or open areas of varying sizes separated by ribs. The lower part of the triangular plate may have connecting members that extend downward (project) for purposes such as connecting to the mesh 62.

[0054] According to another embodiment for creating a pyramidal shape, the knife 61 can be constructed as a pentahedron, like an actual pyramid. In this embodiment as well, the interior, excluding each face, may be an empty space for the smooth passage of raw materials and material conservation, and even on each face, the material may be placed mainly on the corner side, forming one or more holes or open areas and one or more ribs that are open without material.

[0055] The mesh 62 is a type of filter and may have a sieve or mesh structure, and the size of the sieve mesh may be appropriately set depending on the type and size of foreign matter to be filtered and removed. The mesh 62 may be positioned horizontally below the knife 61 and may have a circular or polygonal plate shape. The size of the mesh 62 may be the same as the open bottom of the guide 40, or it may be larger than the open bottom of the guide 40.

[0056] Referring to Figure 2, the box 70 is for preventing dust from spreading to the outside and may be positioned between the guide 40 and the hopper 80. Specifically, the upper part of the box 70 may be positioned to be in close contact with the lower part of the guide 40, and the lower part of the box 70 may be positioned to be in close contact with the upper part of the hopper 80. The lower part of the box 70 may be positioned to enclose the inlet portion of the hopper 80. The connection between the guide 40 and the box 70 and the connection between the box 70 and the hopper 80 may be sealed through sealing members 77 and 78.

[0057] Specifically, the upper part of the box 70 may be sealed to the guide 40 through an upper sealing member 77, and the lower part of the box 70 may be sealed to the inlet of the hopper 80 through a lower sealing member 78, thereby preventing dust from leaking to the outside. The upper part of the box 70 connected to the guide 40 may be left open for raw material input (passage) and the rise (passage) of the cutter 60, and the lower part of the box 70 connected to the inlet of the hopper 80 may be left open for raw material input (passage).

[0058] Referring to Figure 6, the box 70 may consist of a main box 71, a scrap box 72, a glove 73, a main door 74, an inner door 75, an outer door 76, etc. The box 70 may be made with a sealed structure to prevent dust from spreading to the outside. The box 70 may be made transparent so that the inside can be seen. The box 70 may be a glove box that allows manual work with a glove 73 attached. The box 70 may consist of a sealed main box 71 and a scrap box 72.

[0059] The main box 71 may have a roughly hexahedral shape and may include a sloping structure on its top. A pair (2) of manual gloves 73 may be fitted to the front of the main box 71 for manual operation. A sealed main door 74 may be fitted to the top of the main box 71, and an inner door 75 for scrap discharge may be fitted to the side of the main box 71, and these doors 74 and 75 may be sealed to the main box 71. When scrap is generated inside the main box 71, the scrap can be discharged after opening the inner door 75 installed on the side of the main box 71.

[0060] The scrap box 72 is for containing, storing, and / or discharging raw material scrap, and may be located on the side of the main box 71 and connected to an inner door 75. The scrap box 72 may have a substantially hexahedral shape and may be smaller in size than the main box 71. An outer door 76 for scrap discharge may be fitted to the side of the scrap box 72.

[0061] The hopper 80 is located below the rail 20 and is where the raw materials inside the bag 10, which has been moved to the hanger 30, are fed in. The inlet may be formed at the top of the hopper 80. When adjusting the height of the bag 10, the discharge portion of the bag 10 may detach from the hopper 80, which can cause the active material to scatter. Therefore, when adjusting the height of the bag 10, it is necessary to maintain the depth into which the discharge portion of the bag 10 enters the hopper 80.

[0062] To solve the problem of active material scattering, upper and lower photo-electric sensors (not shown) are installed vertically near the inlet of the hopper 80 to sense the position of the end of the discharge section of the bag 10. At least one pair of upper photo-electric sensors are mounted on both sides of the upper part of the inlet of the hopper 80 to sense the minimum (Min.) position of the end of the discharge section of the bag 10. At least one pair of lower photo-electric sensors are mounted on both sides of the lower part of the inlet of the hopper 80 to sense the maximum (Max.) position of the end of the discharge section of the bag 10. Reflecting the sensing results of both photo-electric sensors, the bag 10 can be lowered when the minimum (Min.) position is detected and raised when the maximum (Max.) position is detected.

[0063] Traditionally, the hopper's custom loading and finishing processes were performed manually. Specifically, after the worker confirmed the loading weight, they would grip the discharge opening of the bag 10 to finish the process. To solve this manual problem, a gripper (not shown) can grip the discharge opening of the bag 10 after the raw material has been loaded into the hopper 80, thereby blocking the discharge of the raw material. The grippers are installed on both sides near the loading opening of the hopper 80, and each gripper includes a rod that can reciprocate horizontally inward, but has different installation heights to grip different parts of the bag 10.

[0064] The upper and lower grippers are positioned opposite each other on opposite sides, and the upper and lower rods can move inward toward the center, bringing them nearly close to the center. The pressure from both grippers crushes and deforms the discharge opening to finish it, preventing any remaining raw material from falling onto the floor. For effective finishing (sealing) of the discharge opening, the lower end of the upper gripper and the upper end of the lower gripper can be positioned at the same height. In this way, the grippers can seal off the discharge of the active material when the bag 10 reaches a certain weight.

[0065] Furthermore, according to other embodiments, by adding a forward / reverse stroke type clamping unit (not shown) for finishing the inner packaging material, the bottom of the empty bag 10 after the raw material has been fed into the hopper 80 can be finished to block the discharge of the raw material. The clamping unit may consist of a pair and may be installed horizontally on both sides near the inlet of the hopper 80. The pair of clamping units may be arranged symmetrically at the same height with respect to the inlet of the hopper 80. The pair of clamping units may be arranged, for example, at a 180-degree interval so as to face each other on opposite sides.

[0066] Each clamping unit may include a cylinder, a rod mounted on the cylinder so as to be movable forward and backward, and a pusher unit connected to the rod to pressurize the bag 10. The cylinder may be, for example, an air cylinder. The rod may consist of one or more rods. The pusher unit may be, for example, a rectangular flat plate. A pair of pusher units may be positioned opposite each other and move forward toward the center, pressing on both lower sides of the inner packaging material in the bag 10, thereby plastically deforming and finishing the bag 10. In this way, the inner packaging material can be plastically deformed at the finishing clamp of the damping hopper post unit to prevent the remaining raw material from falling out. Furthermore, the number of man-hours can be reduced by automating the bag finishing and empty bag recovery processes.

[0067] Referring to Figures 7 to 14, the operation process of the automated raw material input device according to the present invention is as follows: Opening the bottom of the bag 10 (operator) (Figure 7) → Transferring the bag 10 to the hopper 80 by the hanger 30 (Figure 8) → Lowering the bag 10 by the lowering of the hanger 30 and cutting (Figure 9) → Discharging the raw materials by the operation of the pusher 50 (Figure 10) → Lowering the knife 61 by the air cylinder (Figure 11) → Removing the remaining amount by the operation of the pusher 50 (Figure 12) → Connecting the bag discharge section (operator) (Figure 13) → Transporting the empty bag 10 by the hanger 30 (Figure 14). Only one rail 20 may be installed, and multiple hangers 30, guides 40, pushers 50, cutters 60, boxes 70, hoppers 80, etc. may be installed. The bag 10 can be placed on a stand.

[0068] Referring to Figure 7, the worker opens the bottom of the bag 10. This operation is performed manually by the worker. The bag 10 may consist of a double-layered structure of outer packaging material and inner packaging material, and the bottom of the outer packaging material may be equipped with an openable and closable discharge section. Specifically, the worker can untie and open the discharge section of the outer packaging material of the bag 10 hanging on the hanger 30.

[0069] Referring to Figure 8, the open-bottomed bag 10 is transported to the hopper 80. This operation is an automated process performed by the hanger 30. The bag 10, suspended from the hanger 30, can be moved horizontally along the rail 20 to a designated position in the hopper 80 by the OHT. The cutter 60 may be raised and pre-positioned within the guide 40 before, during, or after the transport of the bag 10.

[0070] Referring to Figure 9, the bag 10 is lowered and cut. This operation is an automated process performed by the hanger 30 and the cutter 60. After the bag 10 is lowered by the hanger 30 and enters the guide 40, the bottom of the bag 10 can be cut by the sharp knife 61 as it begins to come into contact with the cutter 60, which is pre-positioned within the guide 40, and the raw material can be discharged. At this time, the bag 10 can be lowered so that the knife 61 enters the inside of the bag 10 completely (entirely) or partially.

[0071] Referring to Figure 10, the pusher 50 operates to smoothly discharge the raw material. This operation is an automated process performed by the pusher 50. The pushers 50 on both sides repeatedly strike the bag 10 simultaneously, allowing the raw material to be discharged smoothly and preventing clumping of the raw material. The pusher 50 can operate continuously for the entire discharge time of the raw material, or intermittently at regular time intervals.

[0072] Referring to Figure 11, the cutter 60 or knife 61 descends. This operation is an automated process performed by an air cylinder. The cutter 60 descends either when the discharge of the raw material is almost complete or at any point during the discharge of the raw material.

[0073] Referring to Figure 12, the pusher 50 operates to remove any remaining raw material. This operation is an automated process performed by the pusher 50. The pushers 50 on both sides simultaneously repeatedly strike the bag 10, ensuring that any trace amounts of raw material remaining in the bag 10 are completely discharged.

[0074] Referring to Figure 13, the worker ties the discharge end of bag 10. This operation is performed manually by the worker. Specifically, the worker can tie and close the discharge end of bag 10 after the raw material has been discharged. Alternatively, this finishing work on bag 10 can be performed automatically by a gripper or clamping unit as described above.

[0075] Referring to Figure 14, empty bags are transported. This operation is an automated process performed by the hanger 30. Specifically, empty bags 10, which have been emptied after the raw material has been discharged, can be transported to the transport position by the hanger 30.

[0076] As described above, the automatic loading / feeding device using a knife and pusher according to the present invention uses the weight of the flexible container bag to secure the bottom of the flexible container bag to the pyramidal knife so that the bottom is cut, and the pusher can tap the powder inside to allow for smooth discharge. [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] 10: Bag, 11: Sling bar, 20: Rail, 30: Hanger, 31: Upper hanger, 32: Lower hanger, 33: Wire, 34: Hook, 35: Location hole, 36: Location pin, 37: Load cell, 40: Guide, 50: Pusher, 51: Cylinder, 52: Rod, 53: Link, 54: Tilting member, 60: Cutter, 61: Knife, 62: Mesh, 70: Box, 71: Main box, 72: Scrap box, 73: Globe, 74: Main door, 75: Inner door, 76: Outer door, 77, 78: Sealing member, 80: Hopper

Claims

1. A hopper into which the raw materials contained inside the bag are fed, A cutter is positioned above the input opening formed at the top of the hopper and cuts the bottom of the bag, A box is placed above the hopper to prevent dust from spreading to the outside, A guide is placed on top of the box to guide the bag into place, The guide includes a pusher that is installed on the guide and taps the bag by variable tilting to discharge the raw material, An automated raw material feeding device comprising an upper sealing member retractably positioned between the top of the box and a guide, and a lower sealing member retractably positioned between the bottom of the box and the inlet of the hopper.

2. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cutter is capable of being raised and lowered by an air cylinder.

3. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cutter comprises a pyramidal knife and a mesh positioned below the knife for filtering out foreign matter.

4. The box is transparent and has a sealed structure, as described in claim 1, for the automated raw material input apparatus.

5. The automated raw material input apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the box is a glove box fitted with gloves.

6. The automated raw material input apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the box comprises a main box having a door for discharging gloves and scrap, and a scrap box disposed on the side of the main box.

7. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide has a tapered structure that narrows in width downwards, and the inclination angle and size of the guide are set so that the side of the bag contacts the inner surface of the guide first.

8. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pusher comprises at least one pair of cylinders disposed outside the guide, a rod mounted on the cylinders so as to be able to move forward and backward in the horizontal direction, a link connected to the rod, and a tilting member connected to the link, disposed inside the guide, with its lower end rotatably fixed to the guide, and which is variably tilted by the forward and backward movement of the link.

9. A rail positioned horizontally at a certain height, The raw material input automation apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a hanger mounted on the rail and capable of reciprocating horizontally, and a hanger mounted on the lower end of the bag capable of reciprocating vertically.

10. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the hanger includes an upper hanger mounted on the rail, a lower hanger positioned below the upper hanger, a wire installed between the upper hanger and the lower hanger, and a hook attached to the lower hanger for hanging the bag.

11. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 10, wherein a location hole is formed in either the upper hanger or the lower hanger, and a location pin is formed in the other hanger to be inserted into the location hole.

12. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the hooks consist of at least one pair, and the pair of hooks grip the string-shaped sling bar of the bag at two points and are spaced apart to minimize the height of the bag.

13. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the hanger further includes load cells installed on both the left and right sides of the lower hanger.

14. The automated raw material feeding apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the hanger senses weight deviations using the load cells on both the left and right sides to correct the tilt of the bag, and adjusts the height of the bag according to the weight changes sensed by the load cells on both the left and right sides.

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