JP2000281212A - Article well-ordered carrying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an article well-ordered carrying device capable of carrying well articles without having availability of a production line reduced even when a carried article is confectionery such as a rice pastry. SOLUTION: A parts feeder (a first carrying means) carries an article. A belt conveyer (a second carrying means) is provided on a downstream side being in a carrying direction, and carries the article. A work sensor (an article detection means) (S) is provided on a predetermined place of the belt conveyer, and confirms presence or absence of the article. A vibration generator device (a driving means) 17 gives vibration to the parts feeder. A control part (G) judges a state of the article according to a detection signal output from the work sensor (S) and controls the vibration generator device 17 such that the article in the parts feeder is switched into a carrying and a non-carrying directions for carrying.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an article aligning / transporting means for continuously feeding articles while aligning and transporting them in a certain direction.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, a production line for mass production is often provided with an article aligning / conveying apparatus for aligning and supplying articles, which are products placed in random order. The article aligning and conveying device applies vertical and horizontal vibrations to the conveying path, and transfers the articles to the next process via a conveying conveyor from a parts feeder that aligns and conveys a plurality of articles randomly arranged in the bucket in a line. It is common to carry.

[0003]

When the above-mentioned article aligning and transporting apparatus is used as an apparatus for aligning and transporting confectionery articles such as rice confectionery, which has a variation in shape and is light in weight, the article feeder and the conveyer can be transported from the parts feeder. When the articles are transferred to a conveyor, the articles may overlap with each other, or the articles may lie down, and the articles may be easily clogged in the article transport path including the parts feeder and the transport conveyor. Each time the article is clogged, the operator of the production line must stop the production line to eliminate the clogged state of the article, which causes a problem that the operation rate in the production line is reduced.

Therefore, the present invention focuses on the above problem, and even if the conveyed articles are, for example, confectionery such as rice confectionery, good articles can be obtained without lowering the operation rate of the production line. It is an object of the present invention to provide an article aligning and conveying device capable of conveying.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first transporting means for transporting an article, and a second transporting means disposed downstream of the first transporting means in the transport direction of the article for transporting the article. Transporting means, article detecting means disposed at a predetermined position of the second transporting means for confirming the presence or absence of the article, driving means for operating the first transporting means, and a detection signal output by the article detecting means Judge the transport state of the article based on the
Control means for controlling the driving means so as to switch the article in the first conveying means between a conveying direction and a non-conveying direction, and to control the driving means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the first transport means includes a spiral transport path, and transports the article by vibration. It is.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the control means measures a detection signal output from the article detection means to determine a transport state of the article. An article alignment and transport device, wherein the transport speed of the article in the first transport means is switched.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to third aspects of the present invention, the control means includes a control unit for controlling the control unit based on a detection signal output from the component detection means on the second transport means. The transporting state of the article is grasped, and when it is determined that the article is jammed, the driving means is controlled so that the article in the first transporting means flows in the non-transporting direction. Is an article aligning and conveying device.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect, the control means performs the operation of flowing the article in the non-conveying direction a predetermined number of times, judges again the conveying state of the article, and determines that the article is jammed. An article alignment / conveying apparatus characterized in that an abnormal signal is output when it is determined that an error has occurred.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fifth aspect, the control means outputs the abnormal signal to the driving means and stops the first conveying means. It is.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided the article aligning / conveying means according to the fifth or sixth aspect, further comprising a notifying means for receiving and notifying the abnormal signal.

[0012]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a component aligning and conveying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1,
FIG. 2 shows a production line using a component aligning and conveying device,
FIG. 3 shows a plan view and a side view of the production line when the present invention is applied to transport rice confectionery or the like having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The production line includes a parts transporting section (A), a delivery section (B), a parts supply section (C), a guide section (D), a parts stocking section (E),
It consists of a hopper conveyor (F).

For example, in the case of mass-producing sweets such as rice confectionery, etc., in articles such as rice confectionery, dough as an article is placed on a belt conveyor and baked through an oven or the like. In order to keep the rice confectionery in consideration of hygiene, or to prevent it from getting wet, products such as rice confectionery are stored in individual packaging bags and kept in a sealed state to maintain hygiene. ing.

In FIG. 1, the article conveying section (A) seals the articles (W) such as rice confectionery while wrapping the articles (W) one by one with a packaging film (not shown).
For this reason, an endless chain conveyor (2) provided as a pre-process of the packaging machine and provided with transfer claws (1) for feeding articles (W) such as rice confectionery at predetermined pitch intervals. It is constituted by.

A guide frame (4) composed of a frame is provided on both sides of the transfer path of the transfer claw (1) provided on the chain conveyor (2) so that articles W such as rice confectionery can be transferred to the transfer claw (1). The guide frame (4) forms the guide (4) as a guide for guiding the article (W) along the longitudinal direction of the chain conveyor (2) when the article (W) is fed to a packaging machine (not shown).

The delivery section (B) is provided at the entrance side of the article transport section (A) as an article transport apparatus capable of stocking the article (W) such as the rice confectionery. The part (B) is a plate (6) on which one of the articles (W) such as the rice confectionery can be placed and transported.
And a rotary delivery unit (7) for rotating above the plate (6) and delivering the article (W).

In the rotary feed unit (7), a rotary shaft (8) is supported by a part of a component supply unit to be described later, and the rotary shaft (8) is equally spaced on the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft (8). A soft pressure carrier (9) composed of two flexible members is attached and fixed.

At the exit side of the plate (6) of the delivery section (B), a stop position for transporting an article (W) such as rice confectionery is set, and the opening can be opened when the article (W) is sent out. A stopper (11) is provided.

The article supply section (C) is provided upstream of the delivery section (B) so that articles (W) such as rice confectionery can be supplied in a line. An endless belt conveyor (second conveying means) (13) is bridged between rollers (12), and one side of the roller (12) is connected to a driving roller (1).
The drive roller (12) is connected to a servo motor (M3) as a drive source.

The guide section (D) is provided with the article supply section (C).
Is provided on the surface side of the belt conveyor (13), and the long rectangular parallelepiped rice confectionery articles (W) are arranged in a line along the longitudinal direction of the belt conveyor (13). The position is adjusted.

The parts stocking section (E) is provided at the entrance side of the article supply section (C), and is arranged from a parts feeder (first conveying means) (16) for aligning and conveying the inputted articles (W). Become.

The hopper conveyor (F) supplies a predetermined amount while storing the baked goods (W) such as rice confectionery, and is set on the side of the input section of the goods stock section (E). .

Article supply section (C) and article stock section (E)
The hopper conveyor (F) constitutes an article aligning and conveying device which is a feature of the present invention. The article stocker (E) for aligning and conveying the articles (W) is a parts feeder (16) composed of a circular bowl in this embodiment.
And a vibration generator (driving means) (17) having a function of independently setting the amplitudes of two vibration systems, vertical vibration and horizontal vibration, respectively. A conveying path (16A) for spirally sending out articles along the inner peripheral surface is formed with a gentle ascending gradient, and a belt conveyor (13) of the article supply section (C) is provided at an outlet side of the conveying path (16A). ) Is provided so as to be disposed. In this case, when a large number of articles (W) are put into the parts feeder (16) and the parts feeder (16) is subjected to a vibration composed of a combined vector of the vertical vibration and the horizontal vibration by the vibration generator (17), A large number of articles (W) are transported on a transport path (16) having a spiral inclined surface.
A) gradually rises while being aligned, and is discharged to the article supply section (C) which is the next step.

The above-described components constitute a production line.

The operation of the article aligning and conveying apparatus in the production line having such a configuration will be described in detail. First, articles (W) such as baked rice confectionery are transported on a conveyor without being aligned, and the hopper conveyor (F) is provided. Sent to
Once stored in this hopper conveyor (F),
A fixed amount is automatically or manually supplied to the inside of the article stock section (E) composed of the parts feeder (16), that is, to the transport path (16A) of the parts feeder (16). When the supply of the articles W to the article stock section (E) including the parts feeder (16) is performed manually,
What is necessary is just to carry out without going through the said hopper conveyor (F).

The article (W) supplied to the transport path (16A) of the parts feeder (16) by the article stock unit E.
As described above, by giving the parts feeder (16) a vibration composed of a combined vector of the vertical vibration and the horizontal vibration by the vibration generating device (17), a large number of articles (W) are formed by spiral inclined surfaces. It gradually goes up while aligning the transport path (16A), and is continuously discharged to the article supply section (C) which is the next step.

The belt conveyor (13) of the article (W) sent to the article supply section (C) is driven by the rotation of a servo motor (M3) serving as a drive source, and the belt conveyor (13) is driven. With the transfer, the articles (W) are arranged in a line along the guide section (D) and are sent in a continuous state.

In such an article aligning and conveying apparatus, an article (W) made of a substantially rectangular parallelepiped rice confectionery has a different shape due to baking, or a partially uneven surface or a rounded corner. (W) may overlap or lie side by side, and there is a risk of clogging, particularly at the transfer section between the article supply section (C) and the article stock section (E).

Therefore, the present invention relates to a belt conveyor (1).
3) A work sensor (article detecting means) (S) for detecting the presence or absence of an article (W) at a predetermined position of the transport path (16A) (in this embodiment, upstream of the component supply unit (C)). The article (W) is provided by a control unit (control means) described later.
Is intended to eliminate the clogged state.

The electrical configuration of the article aligning and conveying means, which is a main part of the present invention, will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

The control unit G includes a ROM (G1) and a RAM (G
2) A CPU (G3) and an interface (G4).

The ROM (G1) stores a control processing program and data such as each set value, and a CPU (G1).
Data is read according to the read signal from 3). R
The AM (G2) temporarily stores read information such as a variable value such as a count and a detection signal from the work sensor (S). The CPU (G3) includes the ROM (G1) and the RA
A detection signal from the work sensor (S) input via the interface (G4) is measured from the information of M (G2) to determine the transport state of the article (W), and control the transport speed of the parts feeder (16). And control of the transport direction.

The vibration generator (17) receives a control signal from the control unit (G), and generates a vertical vibration or a horizontal vibration according to the content of the control signal, on the transport path (1) of the parts feeder (16).
6A).

The notifying means (18) receives an abnormal signal from the control section (G) which is generated when there is an abnormality in component conveyance (described later), and notifies the operator of the conveyance error by displaying a buzzer, a lamp, or the like.

As described above, the control section (G) controls the article (W) near the exit of the parts feeder (16) by the work sensor (S) disposed on the belt conveyor (13).
The transport speed control and the transport direction control are performed by judging the transport state. First, the processing method of the transport speed control will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

The control unit (G) checks the transport state of the component (W) transported from the transport path of the parts feeder (16) based on the detection signal output from the work sensor (S).
It is determined how the parts are flowing near the exit of the parts feeder (step S1).

The control unit (G) includes a vibration generator (1).
By changing a plurality of parameter values of the amplitude of the vertical vibration, the amplitude of the horizontal vibration, and the phases of the horizontal vibration and the vertical vibration generated by 7), a control signal for changing the article conveying speed on the parts feeder (16) is generated. .

Therefore, if the control unit (G) determines in step S1 that the number of parts (W) is small, it switches the parameter value and sends a control signal for increasing the part conveying speed of the parts feeder (16) to the vibration generator ( 17) (Step S2).

If the control unit (G) determines in step S1 that the part (W) is flowing more than necessary, the control unit (G) switches the parameter and arbitrarily sets the part transport speed of the parts feeder (16). A control signal is output to the vibration generator (17) to reduce the speed (step S
3).

As a post-process of the manufacturing line shown in the embodiment of the present invention, for example, when a packaging machine is used and the production speed of the packaging machine is changed, the acceleration / deceleration of one pattern as described above ( It is preferable that a parameter having a plurality of acceleration / deceleration patterns be provided according to the production speed instead of the parameter switching between high speed and low speed, and the parameter be switched according to a change in the production speed.

By the variable processing of the conveying speed of the article (W) of the parts feeder (16), the parts (W) are uniformly supplied to the belt conveyor (13).
It is possible to quantify the supply amount of the components conveyed onto the belt conveyor (13) which is a post-process of the parts feeder (16).

Next, a processing method in the transport direction control of the control unit (G) will be described with reference to a flowchart of FIG. 5 and a time chart of FIG. The work sensor (S) outputs a signal “H” when detecting the article (W).

The control unit (G) writes "0" into an internal counter of the control unit (G) at the time of initializing,
The count value n is reset (Step S10).

Next, the control unit (G) controls the belt conveyor (1).
The conveyance state of the article (W) conveyed by 3) is determined based on the detection signal output from the work sensor (S) (step S11). The control unit (G) executes Step S11.
In FIG. 6, as shown in FIG. 6, the time from the rise to the fall of the detection signal output from the work sensor (S) is monitored, and if the actual measurement time t1 is within a predetermined time T, the normal conveyance is performed. State, and if it is outside the predetermined time T, it is determined to be in an abnormal transport state. The control unit (G) obtains, for example, the time required for transporting one article from the length of the article (W) in the longitudinal direction and the transport speed, and the time required for transporting the article (W) during this time. In consideration of the above, the predetermined time T is set.

In step S11, when the detection signal output from the work sensor (S) does not fall even if a predetermined time T has elapsed from the rise (FIG. 6B),
When the detection signal cannot be detected even after the lapse of the predetermined time T (FIG. 6C), it is determined that the article (W) is jammed in the vicinity of the work sensor (S), and the abnormal transport state is determined. I do.

The controller (G) determines whether or not the count value n satisfies a preset number of times N in these abnormal transport states (step S1).
2).

When the count value n does not satisfy the set number N, the control unit (G) increments the count value n (step S13). The control unit (G) outputs a control signal for shifting the relative phase between the vertical vibration and the horizontal vibration of the vibration generator (17) by 180 degrees for a predetermined time, for example, and outputs the control signal (G) on the parts feeder (16). The vibration generator 17 of the article stocking unit E is controlled so that is transported upstream (in the non-transport direction) (step S4).

If the count value n satisfies the set number N in step S12, the control section (G) performs the same determination processing as in step S11 (determines whether the state is a normal transfer state or an abnormal transfer state) (step S15). If it is determined that the transport state is the abnormal transport state again, an abnormal signal is output to the vibration generator 17 to stop the transport of the component (W) by the parts feeder (17) (step S1).
6), an abnormal signal is output to the notifying means (18) composed of a buzzer, a lamp, a display, and the like, and by operating the notifying means (18), the operator is notified that the transport state is abnormal ( Step S17).

It should be noted that the set number of times N depends on the parts feeder (1
The number of times the operation of conveying the article (W) in the non-conveying direction in 7) is determined. That is, in the article aligning and conveying apparatus of the present invention, the setting number N can be freely set from one to a plurality of times by an external setting means (not shown) such as a dip switch or a rotary switch (not shown). It is desirable to do.

As described above, according to the present invention, when an article (W) is clogged at the transfer section between the article supply section (C) and the article stock section (E), the article (W) in the parts feeder (17) is removed. It is characterized in that the clogging state of the article W can be eliminated by conveying the article W in the non-conveying direction. That is, in the embodiment of the present invention, the control unit (G) controls the vibration generator (17) such that the component (W) on the parts feeder (17) is transported in the non-transport direction for a predetermined time. In particular, even when the article (W) is clogged in the transfer section, the clogged state of the article (W) is eliminated by performing the above-described operation or repeating the above-described operation. . Therefore, compared with the conventional case where the worker stops the production line and manually repairs the jammed state of the article (W), the production line is not stopped, and the article (W) is jammed unattended. Since the state can be restored, it is possible to perform good article alignment and transportation without lowering the operation rate of the production line. Also, after performing the above operation,
The conveyance state of the article (W) is checked again, and if it is determined that the article (W) is jammed, the article stock unit E is stopped, and a notification unit is provided to notify that the conveyance state of the article (W) is abnormal. By configuring so as to notify in (18), it is possible to promptly notify an operator on the production line of an abnormal state in article transport.

The parameter value for determining the component transport speed is based on an algorithm set in advance, and the range of change may be stepwise or continuous.

Although the conveyance state was measured only by the work sensor (S) disposed on the upstream side of the belt conveyor (13), the provision of a plurality of work sensors (S) on the belt conveyor (13) enabled More detailed parameter values can be set according to the transport status of the conveyor (13).

In the embodiment of the present invention, a helical parts feeder is used as the first transport means. However, the transport means may be constituted by a linear feeder, a belt conveyor, or the like. The same effect can be obtained if it is variable.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the belt conveyor (13) is used as the second conveying means. However, for example, a linear feeder may be used, and the conveying state is monitored by the work sensor (S). I just need.

In the embodiment of the present invention, an abnormal signal is output to the vibration generator (17) of the article stock unit (E), and the vibration generator (17) is stopped.
In the present invention, the servo motor (M) of the article supply section (C) is used.
3), and the article supply unit (C) may also be stopped. Further, in the embodiment of the present invention, the work sensor S is arranged on the upstream side of the article supply section C. However, in the present invention, the transfer section between the first conveying means and the second conveying means is provided. May be provided in the second transporting means in the vicinity of.

[0056]

According to the present invention, there is provided a first conveying means for conveying an article, a second conveying means disposed downstream of the first conveying means in the conveying direction and conveying the article, and a second conveying means for conveying the article. An article detecting means disposed at a predetermined position of the conveying means for confirming the presence or absence of the article; a driving means for operating the first conveying means; and a conveyance of the article based on a detection signal output by the article detecting means. Control means for controlling the driving means to determine a state and to switch and convey the article in the first conveying means between a conveying direction and a non-conveying direction. By grasping the transport state of the parts to be performed, it is possible to perform good article alignment transport. By providing the first transport unit with a spiral transport path and transporting the article by vibration, the components can be transported while being stocked and sequentially aligned.

The control means measures a detection signal output from the article detection means to determine the conveyance state of the article, and switches the conveyance speed of the article in the first conveyance means. Parts with little variation can be conveyed.

Further, the control means grasps the transport state of the article on the second transport means based on the detection signal output from the component detecting means, and when it is determined that the article is jammed, Since the driving means is controlled so that the articles in the first conveying means flow in the non-conveying direction, the worker stops the production line as in the related art, and the article is manually clogged. As compared with the case of repairing a product, the clogging state of articles can be repaired without stopping the production line, and it is possible to suppress a decrease in the operation rate in the production line. Further, since the clogged state is repaired, it is possible to prevent damage to the parts due to the clogging of the parts.

The control means performs the operation of flowing the article in the non-conveying direction a predetermined number of times, judges again the conveying state of the article, and outputs an abnormality signal when it is judged that the article is jammed. This makes it possible to automate processing such as controlling the transport direction or notifying an operator when an abnormality occurs.

The control means outputs the abnormality signal to the drive means to stop the first transport means.
In the event of an abnormality, the operator can quickly perform maintenance.

Further, by providing the notifying means for receiving and notifying the abnormal signal, it is not necessary for the operator to always monitor the transport state of the parts.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an entire transfer apparatus applied in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a part organizing and conveying means according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method of controlling the transport speed according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a transport direction control method according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a time chart showing each transport state in the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 13 Belt Conveyor (Second Conveying Means) 16 Parts Feeder (First Conveying Means) 17 Vibration Generator (Drive Means) G Control Unit (Control Means) S Work Sensor (Article Detecting Means) T Predetermined Time W Parts

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A first transport unit for transporting an article, a second transport unit disposed downstream of the first transport unit in a transport direction of the first transport unit, and transporting the article; An article detection means disposed at a location, for confirming the presence or absence of the article, a driving means for operating a first conveyance means, and judging a conveyance state of the article based on a detection signal outputted by the article detection means. Control means for controlling the driving means so as to switch the article in the first conveying means between a conveying direction and a non-conveying direction, and to control the driving means. 2. The article alignment and transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first transport means has a spiral transport path and transports the articles by vibration. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the control unit measures a detection signal output from the article detection unit to determine a conveyance state of the article, and switches a conveyance speed of the article in the first conveyance unit. The article aligning and conveying device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: 4. The control means, based on a detection signal output from the component detection means, grasps a transport state of the article on the second transport means and determines that the article is jammed. 4. The article aligning / conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving unit is controlled so that the article in the first conveying unit flows in the non-conveying direction. . 5. The control means performs the operation of flowing the article in the non-conveying direction a predetermined number of times, judges again the conveying state of the article, and outputs an abnormal signal when judging that the article is jammed. The article aligning and conveying device according to claim 4, wherein: 6. The article aligning and conveying apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the control unit outputs the abnormality signal to the driving unit and stops the first conveying unit. 7. The article aligning and conveying means according to claim 5, further comprising a notifying means for receiving and notifying the abnormal signal.