Tofu Packing With Upside-Down Pack Supply
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tofu packing devices face challenges in maintaining smooth operation due to issues with grasping empty packs, which can lead to misalignment or missed packing, and soft tofu handling limits processing speed.
Innovation Solution
A tofu packing device with a pack supply system that aligns and inverts packs for efficient covering, using conveyors and robots to ensure continuous supply and accurate packing, even when packs are upside down.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a robot performs packing operation without grasping empty packs, then the device complexity is reduced, but the reliability of packing operation deteriorates due to misalignment or missed packing
Solution Approach 1:
The empty packs are supplied and positioned in advance on the transfer conveyor before the tofu cakes arrive. The pack covering device prepares the packs upside down in a predetermined position, so that when the tofu cake reaches the packing position, the pack is already ready and correctly positioned, eliminating the need for real-time grasping and positioning operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The empty packs are supplied upside down to the pack covering device. This inversion allows the pack opening to face downward during transfer, and when the pack is placed over the tofu cake, it naturally orients correctly with the opening facing upward, facilitating smooth packing without complex grasping mechanisms.
2Ease of operation
If soft tofu is grasped and dropped into empty pack, then the ease of operation is improved, but the productivity deteriorates due to limited processing speed
Solution Approach 1:
The manual grasping and dropping operation is replaced with a mechanical pack covering device that automatically places packs over tofu cakes. The device uses a cover body that moves horizontally to place packs, eliminating the need for grasping soft tofu and enabling high-speed continuous packing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The pack covering device operates continuously as tofu cakes are conveyed on the transfer conveyor. Packs are supplied continuously from the pack supply device, and the cover body repeatedly places packs over each tofu cake in sequence, maintaining continuous productive action without interruption or speed limitation.
3Device complexity
If packs are supplied from lateral side of transfer conveyor, then the device complexity is reduced, but the ease of operation deteriorates due to alignment difficulty
Solution Approach 1:
The pack supply device acts as an intermediary between the pack source and the pack covering device. It receives packs, orients them upside down, and supplies them at the correct position on the transfer conveyor. This intermediary function ensures proper alignment and positioning of packs without requiring complex alignment mechanisms at the packing station.
Data Source
AI summary
A tofu packing device includes a pack covering device and a pack supply device. The pack covering device is configured to cover a plurality of cakes of tofu with packs in a state in which the packs are upside down, the plurality of cakes of tofu being aligned at predetermined intervals in front, rear, left and right directions on a conveying surface of a transfer conveyor. The pack supply device is configured to continuously supply the packs to the pack covering device from a lateral side of the transfer conveyor.