Rotary Puck Conveyance System for Damage-Free Container Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional conveyance systems for containers risk damaging the containers due to contact with guides during inspection, leading to scratches or other forms of damage.
Innovation Solution
A conveyance system featuring a disc-shaped rotor with a table and a puck mechanism that includes a first puck member, a second puck member, and a pusher member, allowing for vertical movement and rotation to prevent contact with guides, while also incorporating a cap for stable holding and imaging capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional conveyance systems use guides to direct containers, then conveyance function is achieved, but container damage occurs due to contact with guides
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the guide component entirely from the conveyance system. Instead of using guides to direct containers, the system employs a rotor with multiple stations where containers are held and transferred without contact with guiding surfaces, thereby eliminating the source of damage while maintaining conveyance functionality
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces intermediate holding stations on the rotor between the supply section and inspection section. These stations act as mediators that receive containers from the supply section and transfer them to the inspection section without requiring direct contact with guides, thus preventing damage during transfer
2Manufacturing precision
If containers are conveyed through contact with guides, then positioning accuracy is achieved, but scratches and damage occur on container surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces the mechanical guide-contact positioning system with a rotational positioning system. The rotor rotates to precisely position containers at different stations (supply, inspection, discharge) without mechanical contact, maintaining positioning accuracy while eliminating surface damage from guide contact
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from two-dimensional guide-based positioning to three-dimensional rotational positioning. Containers are positioned not only along the conveyance path but also through vertical movement between different rotor levels, enabling precise positioning without guide contact
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a complex guide system is used to prevent container damage, then protection is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention employs a dynamic rotor system that rotates to bring containers to different functional stations. This dynamic approach allows the same structure to serve multiple functions (conveyance, positioning, protection) without requiring complex static guide systems, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining protection
Data Source
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AI summary
A conveyance system (1) and a system for inspecting an article to be conveyed by using the conveyance system (1) are provided with a purpose of preventing contact of an article to be conveyed with a guide or the like with a simple structure, the conveyance system (1) including: a rotor section (2) having a disc-shaped rotor body (21) that is rotatable about a first axis (O1) and a table (22) that integrally rotates at an outer peripheral edge of the rotor body (21); a rotation mechanism (3) having a rotary drive section (31) that is mounted in the table (22) and a transmission section (32) that transmits rotary drive power for driving the rotary drive section (31) and; a pack (5) having a first pack member (51) that can accommodate an article to be conveyed (10) in an upper portion, a second pack member (52) that contacts an inner periphery of the first pack member (51) in a vertically movable manner and in a lower portion of which the transmission section (32) is inserted, and a pusher member (53) that contacts an inner periphery of the second pack member (52) in a vertically movable manner and on which the article to be conveyed (10) is placed, and being rotatable about a second axis (02) by the rotation mechanism (3); and a lift mechanism (4) having an arm (41), one end of which is supported by the rotor body (21) in a vertically movable manner, and the other end of which is used to place the first pack member (51) thereon and supports the second pack member (52).