DE20304880U1 - cache - Google Patents

Description

HAHÖ-68gDE
25 March 2003

DESCRIPTION

Cache TECHNICAL AREA

The invention relates to an intermediate storage facility for tablet blisters, plastic cases, boxes and similar products that can be stacked on top of one another. In terms of production, such an intermediate storage facility is interposed between two production facilities. It represents a type of buffer into which products arriving from the first production facility can be temporarily stored in the event of disruptions in the downstream production facility and, conversely, in the event of disruptions in the upstream production facility, products can be removed again.

STATE OF THE ART

An intermediate storage facility for chocolate bars and similar food particles is known from the German utility model G 94 08 634. These products are always forced to pass through the storage facility, even if there are no disturbances in the upstream or downstream production facilities. During their transport through the storage facility, the individual products lie on individual product trays, which are transported together through the storage facility in so-called gondolas. With such a gondola storage facility, different production speeds of the upstream and downstream production facilities can be compensated. To make this possible, separate motor drives for the

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HAHÖ-68gDE
25 March 2003

Storage facility with endless conveyor belt. A carriage is arranged in the storage facility, which is held in place by the conveyor belt. By adjusting this carriage, the conveyor belt can be made larger or smaller in the area that is loaded with the products. If more products are fed into the storage facility per unit of time than are removed from the storage facility per unit of time, the carriage is adjusted so that the storage capacity available for the products is larger. If the loading and removal capacity is the same, the carriage practically remains at rest. Such a storage facility is in constant operation, since the products always have to pass through it. This means that the drive devices for the endless conveyor belt in the storage facility cannot be switched off in terms of energy, even if the upstream and downstream production facilities are operating smoothly. In addition to the relatively high energy consumption caused by this when operating such a storage facility, such a storage facility is structurally complex due to the arrangement of a tray for each individual product and cannot therefore be used economically for every purpose.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Based on this prior art, the invention is based on the object of specifying an economically advantageous buffer of the type mentioned at the beginning.

This invention is defined by the features of the main claim. Useful developments of the invention are the subject of further claims following this claim.

HAHÖ-68gDE
25 March 2003

The buffer according to the invention has the advantage that the products can be buffered individually stacked on top of each other, so that individual trays are not required for each product. In addition, the stacking device of the buffer, into which products can be stored in the event of a malfunction and removed again when required, is not required if the upstream and downstream production facilities are operating smoothly. All that is required is the conveyor device provided as a bridging transport device between the upstream and downstream production facilities.

This means that in the case of trouble-free operation, which is the norm, an economically advantageous arrangement is provided in which, in the event of a fault, products can be temporarily stored or products stored from such a buffer can be removed from storage immediately, thus making any downstream or upstream fault ineffective in its effect on the further production process.

The two production facilities that are located upstream and downstream of the intermediate storage facility are usually means of transport such as endless conveyor belts.

A conveyor device in the form of a so-called vacuum belt can be arranged as a bridging transport device between these two upstream and downstream transport devices. With such a vacuum belt, the products can be sucked in and transported from one conveyor device to the other.

According to an embodiment shown in the drawing, the vacuum belt has two endlessly rotating conveyor belts which are in a mutual constant

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25 March 2003

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A suction device acts in the area next to the conveyor belts in such a way that the product to be transported can be sucked onto the two belts and held there. This suction device can be effectively present in the area between the two conveyor belts.

If a product is to be stacked in the stacking device and the product in question is to be temporarily stored, a discharge device can be provided in the transport direction, for example, across the two conveyor belts. This discharge device can move a product that is held by suction on the two belts downwards away from the conveyor belts so far that the suction force is interrupted and the product can fall downwards away from the conveyor belts and into the stacking device. The discharge by the discharge device can therefore be carried out if the transport speed of the product in question is not sufficient.

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The product can be stopped by means of a stopping device upstream of the ejection device. This stopping device can be implemented in the form of pins arranged next to the conveyor belts and which can be moved out of the plane of the conveyor belts. A product held by suction on the conveyor belts which hits such pins is stopped in its transport movement and is then moved at least partially away from the conveyor belts by the ejection device, which takes the form of strips, for example, which can be moved downwards out of the plane of the conveyor belts, so that the holding force holding the product to the conveyor belts by suction becomes too small to continue to hold the product on the conveyor belts. As a result, the product will fall downwards from the conveyor belts.

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25 March 2003

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The stacking device positioned under the conveyor belts has at least two magazine devices in the conveying direction, in which products can be optionally stored. In this case, each of these magazine devices has a series of magazines in which each individual magazine can be positioned under the conveyor device. In each of these magazines, a certain number of products can be stacked on top of one another as a product stack. Further details on the design of such magazine devices and on the control for storing and retrieving products in the magazines can be found in the drawings and the relevant figure description.

With, for example, two magazine devices, as shown in the drawing, products can be stored either in one of the two magazine devices or in the magazine available there. On the other hand, it is possible to store the products from the magazine devices 0 or from the magazine available there.

existing product stacks can also be removed again, i.e. the top product of such a product stack can be "fed" one after the other to the conveyor belts and thus to the suction device and thus to enable the /5 products to be transported away again by the conveyor device.

In addition, it is possible to temporarily store products with the first magazine device in the conveying direction, for example, and at the same time to take a

comparable number of products. The stacking device is used even though there is no disruption in the upstream or downstream production facilities. This can be useful for storing products such as 35

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for example, to check blister packs for their perfect condition. These products removed from the production process can be removed from the buffer without the checked products interrupting the flow of products to be processed further; a disruption in the operational process in connection with the manufacture and, for example, the packaging of the products, caused by products to be checked, would not occur. Products found to be good products during the check can be returned to further production, for example by being stored in magazines that are not completely full and are not currently positioned below the conveyor device, using third conveyor systems.

Further advantageous embodiments and developments of the invention can be found in the other features of the claims and the following exemplary embodiment.

SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The invention is described and explained in more detail below using the embodiment shown in the drawing.
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Fig. 1 is a schematic, partially sectioned side view of the buffer according to the invention,

Fig. 2 is a partially sectioned schematic plan view of the buffer according to Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a partial perspective view of the buffer according to the invention. 35

HAHÖ-68gDE
25 Mar 2003

WAYS TO CARRY OUT THE INVENTION

An intermediate storage device 10 is arranged between the discharge conveyor 12 of a blister manufacturing machine and the feed conveyor 14 of a further processing machine such as a so-called wallet machine or cartoning machine.

The intermediate storage device 10 has a so-called vacuum belt 16, which is positioned with its left-hand inlet area 18 above the outlet belt 12 and with its right-hand outlet area 20 above the feed belt 14. Products fed from the outlet belt 12 in the transport direction 22 to the vacuum belt 16, which in the present example are tablet blisters 24, are sucked in by the vacuum belt 16 in the inlet area 18 and transferred to the feed belt 14 in the outlet area 20 by the suction force no longer present there and from there fed in the transport direction 22, for example, to a wallet machine (not shown) or the cartoning machine or another further production facility.

The vacuum belt 16 has a left and right endlessly rotating conveyor belt 26, 28. These two conveyor belts are spaced apart by 30 (Fig. 3). A suction gap 32 is formed at this distance 3C. This suction gap 32 represents the lower opening of a vacuum chamber 34 formed in the suction belt 16, in which a vacuum can be created via suction connections connected to a vacuum source 35, of which a suction connection 360 is shown in Fig. 1. As a result of such a vacuum, tablet blisters 24 fed via the outlet belt 12 can be sucked in by the two conveyor belts 26, 28 and transferred to the outlet belt 12.

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In the outlet area 2 0 , such a blister 24 sucked onto the conveyor belts 26, 28 loses its contact with the conveyor belts 26, 28 diverted into the interior of the chamber 3 4 and comes to lie on the upper run of the feed belt 14 so that it can be transported further by the feed belt in the transport direction 22.

By means of such a vacuum belt 16, the tablet blisters 24 can be continuously transported from the discharge belt 12 to the feed belt 14 with trouble-free operation of the upstream and downstream production facilities.

A left and right magazine device 40, 42 is provided beneath the vacuum belt 16. Each of the two magazine devices 40, 42 has several individual magazines 44 and 46 arranged one behind the other in a row. The magazines 44 of the left magazine device 40 can be moved on a left travel rail 50 and the magazines 46 of the right magazine device 42 can be moved on a right travel rail 52. In the present case, these two travel rails 50, 52 are aligned in the transverse direction 54, which is at right angles to the transport direction 22, beneath the vacuum belt 16.

On each of the two rails 50, 52 there is a number of slides 56 or 58 corresponding to the number of magazines 44 or 46. A magazine 44 or 46 is permanently attached to each slide 56, 58.

Each magazine 44, 46 has two side walls 60, 62, which have a clear distance 64 in the transverse direction 54 such that a tablet blister 24 stored between them can be laterally framed by them with play.

HAHÖ-68gDE * &iacgr;&iacgr;.. I ! .''i.'

25 March 2003 . · · · ·

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Each side wall 60, 62 is U-shaped in cross-section and has a lower edge 68. The side walls 60, 62 could also be L-shaped. The blisters 24 located between the side walls 60, 62 and stored in the corresponding magazine 44 or 46 are supported on the two edges 68.

Between the side walls 60, 62 and between their lower edges 68, a magazine plate 70 can be adjusted in the adjustment direction 72, up and down, relative to the side walls 60, 62. With the help of the plate 70, the stack 76 of blisters 24 stacked on top of each other between the side walls 60, 62 can be moved up or down in the adjustment direction 72, specifically within the magazine 44 or 46. The adjustment of the plate 70 takes place depending on whether a blister 24 is to be stored in a magazine or whether the topmost blister of a stack 78 is to be lifted up against the vacuum belt 16 and sucked up again by the vacuum belt 16 and transported away, as will be described in more detail below.

The storage of blisters 24 takes place by means of a discharge device 80 and a holding device 82 arranged upstream of the same in the transport direction.

Above a magazine 44 of the left magazine device 40 provided below the vacuum belt 16 and above a magazine 46 of the right magazine device 42 also provided below the vacuum belt 16, there is a discharge device 80 and a stopping device 82 next to the two conveyor belts 26, 28. In Fig. 6, only one discharge device 80 and only one stopping device 82 are shown.

HAHÖ-68gDE 25 March 2003

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The discharge device 80 consists of a right and left discharge bar 84, 86, which are located outside next to the right conveyor belt 28 in the transport direction 22 and outside next to the left conveyor belt 26 in the transport direction 22. In front of these two discharge bars 84, 86, there are two stop pins 88, 89, which can be extended downwards from the level of the conveyor belts 26, 28. In the extended state, a blister 24 suspended by suction on the conveyor belts 26, 28 strikes these pins 88, 89 with its front end.

The ejection bars 84, 86 are then moved downwards out of the plane of the conveyor belts, thereby pushing a blister 24 either completely or partially off the conveyor belts 26, 28. As a result, the suction force can no longer hold the blister 24, with the result that the blister can fall into the magazine 44 provided below the ejection bars and the stop pins 88, 89. This falling in can be supported by the thrust of the ejection bars, so that in addition to falling in by itself, a more or less pushing in can also occur.

Such a release device and stopping device 82 is also provided above the magazine 46.
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A light barrier 94 can be generated through the storage space of the magazine 44 or 46 via sensor devices 90, 92 (Fig. 1) positioned to the side of the magazine 44, 46 to be filled or emptied. When stacking, this sensor device 90, 92 is activated with the result that when the light barrier 94 is interrupted by a blister 24 falling into the magazine 40 from above, the plate 70 of this magazine 40 is gradually moved downwards until the light barrier 94 is free again, i.e. no longer interrupted. The distance 96 between this light barrier 94 and

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thus the sensor device 90, 92 from the lower conveyor belts 26, 28 and thus from the vacuum belt 16 is smaller in the present example than the length 98 of a blister 24 in the transport direction 22. This prevents a blister falling or being pushed into a magazine by the vacuum belt 16 from being stacked upside down.

If the magazine 44 shown in Fig. 1 is completely filled, this magazine 44 of the left magazine device 40 is transported in the transverse direction 54 until the magazine 44 adjacent to the magazine 44 is positioned under the vacuum belt 16. During this exchange of the magazines 44 of the left magazine device 40, the magazines 46 of the second magazine device 42 are filled in a comparable manner if required.

To remove blisters 42 from magazines 44 or 46, the magazine provided for this purpose - in Fig. 1 the corresponding magazine 46 - is positioned under the vacuum belt 16 and moved accordingly on the rail 52.

The plate 70 of the magazine 46 of the figure is then moved upwards in the adjustment direction 72, so that the topmost blister 24 can be sucked up again by the vacuum belt 16 and then transported further onto the feed belt 14. The control of the magazine plate 70 of the magazine 46, for example, is carried out by means of a second sensor device 91, 93, which is also present in the left magazine device 40. This sensor device also generates a light barrier 95. The distance 97 of this light barrier 95 from the

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both conveyor belts 26, 28 is such that if this distance is exceeded, the topmost blister of the respective blister stack 78 can be sucked up again by the vacuum belt 16.

The magazine devices 40, 42 rest above the two travel rails 50, 52 on a box-shaped substructure in which the necessary drive and control units are housed. The vacuum belt 16, which is driven by a motor drive 102, can also rest on the substructure 100 via a holding structure.

Claims (17)

1. Intermediate storage device ( 10 ) for tablet blisters ( 24 ), plastic cases, boxes and similar products that can be stacked on top of one another, which can be interposed in the transport direction ( 22 ) between a first and a second production device ( 12 , 14 ) in the production direction, characterized in that - an endlessly circulating conveyor device ( 16 ) is provided between the two production devices ( 12 , 14 ), - a vacuum generator ( 35 ) is effectively present on the conveyor device ( 16 ) such that the products ( 24 ) can be held by suction on the conveyor device ( 16 ), - at least one stacking device ( 40 , 42 ) for products ( 24 ) is provided below the conveyor device ( 16 ), - in which products ( 24 ) which have fallen off or been rejected by the conveyor device ( 16 ) can be stored stacked on top of one another and/or - from which stored products ( 24 ) can be transferred back to the conveying device ( 16 ) by suction, - the stacking device ( 40 , 42 ) is adjustable in height so that the clear distance ( 96 , 97 ) between the conveying device ( 16 ) and the topmost product ( 24 ) of a product stack ( 76 , 78 ) present in the stacking device does not exceed or fall below predetermined values. 2. Buffer according to claim 1, characterized in that - the two production facilities each contain a means of transport ( 12 , 14 ) for the products, - the conveying device ( 16 ) is functionally interposed between the two transport means ( 12 , 14 ). 3. Buffer according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the conveying device has a vacuum belt ( 16 ) to which the products ( 24 ) from the first production device ( 12 ) can be held by suction. 4. Buffer according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the vacuum belt ( 16 ) has two endlessly rotating conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) which have a mutual lateral constant distance ( 30 ), - a suction device ( 32 ) is provided transversely next to the two conveyor belts in the transport direction, - a discharge device ( 80 ) is provided in the transport device ( 22 ) transversely next to the two conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ), by means of which a product ( 24 ) can be moved downwards away from the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) in such a way that the holding force which holds this product ( 24 ) by suction to the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) becomes ineffective, - a stopping device ( 82 ) is provided in the transport direction ( 22 ) in front of the ejection device ( 80 ), which can be moved downwards out of the plane of the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) so far that further transport of a product ( 24 ) hanging on the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) can be interrupted. 5. Buffer according to claim 4, characterized in that - the stopping device ( 82 ) has two extendable and retractable pins ( 88 , 89 ). 6. Buffer according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the stacking device ( 40 , 42 ) has at least two magazine devices ( 40 , 42 ) arranged one behind the other in the transport direction, - products ( 24 ) which can be stacked one on top of the other to form a product stack ( 76 , 78 ) can be stored in or removed from each magazine device ( 40 , 42 ). 7. Buffer according to claim 6, characterized in that - each magazine device ( 40 , 42 ) has a row of magazines ( 44 , 46 ) which can each be positioned individually one after the other under the conveyor device ( 16 ). 8. Buffer according to claim 7, characterized in that - the magazines ( 44 , 46 ) of each magazine device ( 40 , 42 ) are jointly adjustable along a travel rail ( 50 , 52 ). 9. Buffer according to claim 8, characterized in that - each magazine ( 44 , 46 ) is fixedly mounted on a carriage ( 56 , 58 ), - the travel carriages ( 56 , 58 ) are adjustable along a travel rail ( 50 , 52 ). 10. Buffer according to one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that 1. the magazine ( 44 , 46 ) has at least two spaced-apart side walls ( 60 , 62 ) by which the respectively stored products ( 24 ) of a product stack ( 76 , 78 ) are laterally framed, - in the bottom area of the magazine ( 44 , 46 ), between the side walls ( 60 , 62 ), there is a height-adjustable magazine plate ( 70 ). 11. Buffer according to claim 10, characterized in that 1. a stack height monitoring device ( 90 , 92 , 94 ; 91 , 93 , 95 ) is connected to the adjusting device for the magazine plate ( 70 ) in such a way that when a first predetermined distance ( 96 ) between the topmost product of a product stack ( 76 ) and the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) is undershot, the plate ( 70 ) is lowered until this predetermined first distance is no longer undershot. 12. Buffer according to claim 11, characterized in that - the predetermined first distance ( 96 ) is on the one hand greater than the extension path of the ejection device ( 80 ) and that of the stopping device ( 82 ) and on the other hand is smaller than the length ( 98 ) of a product ( 24 ) in the transport direction ( 22 ). 13. Buffer according to one of claims 10 to 12, characterized in that - the stack height monitoring device ( 90 , 92 , 94 ; 91 , 93 , 95 ) is connected in a control manner to the adjusting device for the magazine plate ( 70 ) such that when a second predetermined distance ( 97 ) between the topmost product of a product stack ( 78 ) and the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) is exceeded, the plate ( 70 ) is lifted until this predetermined second distance ( 97 ) is no longer exceeded. 14. Buffer according to claim 13, characterized in that - the predetermined second distance ( 97 ) is adapted to the existing suction force of the suction device ( 35 ) such that a product ( 24 ) which is less than this distance from the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ) is durably sucked by the suction device ( 35 ) onto the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ). 15. Buffer according to one of claims 10 to 14, characterized in that - two light barriers ( 94 , 95 ) crossing the clearance space of the magazine ( 44 , 46 ) can be generated by the stack height monitoring device ( 90 , 92 , 94 ; 91 , 93 , 95 ), - the first light barrier ( 94 ) when the first distance ( 96 ) becomes effective and the second light barrier ( 95 ) when the second distance ( 97 ) becomes effective can be produced below the conveyor belts ( 26 , 28 ). - 16 Buffer according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - can be activated in the event of malfunctions in the operation of the second production facility ( 14 ): - the stopping device ( 80 ) and the ejection device ( 82 ) and then, - the adjustment device for a magazine plate ( 70 ) for stacking products ( 24 ). 17. Buffer according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - can be activated in the event of malfunctions in the operation of the first production facility ( 12 ): - the adjustment device for magazine plates ( 70 ) for stacking products ( 24 ). 18. Buffer according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that - the conveying device or the vacuum belt ( 16 ) can be operated continuously.