JP2022031029A - Transfer device and conveyance device of article - Google Patents

Abstract

To quickly and surely transfer a carried-in article under conveyance.SOLUTION: A transfer device comprises: a plurality of pushers 41 for pushing an article Pc along a transfer route Ta1; a plurality of hold members 42 which respectively independently hold the plurality of pushers 41 so as to rotate; a movement mechanism 43 which respectively independently moves the plurality of hold members 42; and a guide part 44 for supporting at least a part of an outer side in a radial direction of the article Pc. The movement mechanism 43 moves the plurality of hold members so that the articles Pc are delivered at constant intervals.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

The present invention relates to a transfer device for transferring articles and a transfer device for articles provided with the transfer device.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-525176 discloses a linear transport device using a linear motor as a device for transporting articles. This linear transfer device includes a stator of a linear motor in which an electromagnet is arranged, and a transfer member provided with a permanent magnet. A linear motor system is formed by an electromagnet and a permanent magnet. The transport member has a holder or a corresponding holder, and the product is transported by sandwiching the product between the holders arranged in the transport direction and the corresponding holder and moving the transport member.

Special Table 2015-525176

When the linear transfer device is used for transporting an article in a manufacturing process, it may be transported to the linear transfer device using a belt conveyor depending on the previous process. When an article is transferred from a belt conveyor to a linear transfer device, the transfer operation must be stopped for the transfer, and it may be difficult to transfer quickly. Further, when transporting by a belt conveyor, the transport interval of the articles may vary, and in that case, acceleration or deceleration of the holder of the transport portion on the downstream side is required, which may complicate control and heat.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a transfer device for quickly and surely transferring an imported article.

In order to achieve the above object, the transfer device of the present invention moves an article along an arcuate transfer path to transfer the article from the upstream transfer path to the downstream transfer path. The transfer device is independently arranged with a plurality of pushers that are partially arranged so as to be movable along a circumferential movement path that overlaps with the transfer path and pushes the article along the transfer path, and a plurality of pushers, respectively. A plurality of holding members that can be held and rotated around the central axis of the arcuate movement path, a moving mechanism that independently moves the plurality of holding members, and the article moving along the transfer path. In the meantime, it has a guide portion that supports at least a part of the radial outer side of the arcuate transfer path of the article. The moving mechanism moves a plurality of the holding members so that the article is delivered to the transport portion on the downstream side at regular intervals.

With such a configuration, even if the supply interval of the articles supplied to the transfer device varies, it is possible to send the articles by each of the plurality of pushers. As a result, the articles can be transferred to the downstream transport section at regular intervals, and the articles can be transferred quickly and reliably.

In the above configuration, the pusher comes into contact with at least a part of the rear surface of the article in the transport direction as it travels along the transfer path. With this configuration, the article can be pushed in the transport direction, and the article can be quickly replaced.

In the above configuration, the pusher contacts at least a portion of the radially inner surface of the article in the transfer path. By doing so, it is possible to stably transfer articles.

In the above configuration, the guide portion is integrally formed with the pusher. With this configuration, the guide portion is less likely to get caught in the article at the transfer portion. Therefore, the goods can be changed quickly and surely.

In the above configuration, the guide portion is a member separate from the pusher, and is arranged in the radial direction outside the transfer path and has a strip shape extending along the transfer path. With such a configuration, the degree of freedom in arranging the guide portion can be increased.

In the above configuration, the plurality of holding members are annular members arranged side by side along the central axis, and have a mounting portion arranged on the outer peripheral surface to which the pusher is mounted, and the mounting portion. Each pusher attached to is in the same position in the central axis direction. With this configuration, the positions where the articles are pushed are the same, so that the articles can be moved stably.

In the above configuration, internal tooth gears are formed on the inner surfaces of the plurality of holding members, and the moving mechanism includes a plurality of pinion gears that mesh with the internal tooth gears of the plurality of holding members, and each of the plurality of pinion gears. Has multiple motors, and. With this configuration, each pusher can be moved independently.

According to the transfer device of the present invention, the carried-in goods can be transferred quickly and surely.

It is a schematic layout drawing of a transport device. It is a functional block diagram of a transport device. It is a top view of the 1st transfer shuttle and the 2nd transfer shuttle moving on the 1st straight line transfer rail. It is a figure seen from the outside of the 1st transport shuttle and the 2nd transport shuttle shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a view seen from the rear side in the transport direction of the first transport shuttle and the second transport shuttle shown in FIG. It is a top view of the state which the 1st transport shuttle and the 2nd transport shuttle which held the article are moving along the 1st curve transport rail. It is a perspective view which shows the state which the transfer | transfer | transfer | transfer of an article is performed. It is a perspective view of a transfer device. It is a top view of the transfer device. It is a top view of the transfer device of a modification. It is a top view which shows the state which the 1st accumulation shuttle and the 2nd integration shuttle which concerns on this invention hold the integrated article. 11 is a view seen from the outside of the first integrated shuttle and the second integrated shuttle shown in FIG. 11 is a view of the first integrated shuttle and the second integrated shuttle shown in FIG. 11 as viewed from the rear side in the transport direction. It is an enlarged plan view of the 2nd transport part in the state which the article is accumulating. It is a top view which shows the 1st transport part and the sub-carrying part. It is a top view of the state which held the article by the 1st transport shuttle and the 2nd transport shuttle, and the 1st sub transport shuttle and the 2nd sub transport shuttle at the same time. It is a back view of the article shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the state after moving an article to an auxiliary transport part. It is a flowchart which shows the acquisition procedure of the position information of an article by a control unit. It is a flowchart which shows an example of return control.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the direction in which the article Pc is transported is defined as the transport direction Tr, and the “upstream side in the transport direction” and the “downstream side in the transport direction” are defined along the transport direction Tr. In the case of explaining the member itself such as the article Pc, the "downstream side in the transport direction" is referred to as the "front side in the transport direction", and the "upstream side in the transport direction" is referred to as the "rear side in the transport direction". For example, the surface of the article Pc facing the downstream side in the transport direction is defined as the "downstream surface in the transport direction" or the "front surface in the transport direction", and the surface facing the upstream side in the transport direction is the "surface on the upstream side in the transport direction". Alternatively, it will be described as "rear surface in the transport direction". Further, the outer side in the radial direction from the center of the loop of the rail formed in the loop shape will be described as the outer side, and the inner side in the radial direction will be described as the inner side.

<Transporting device A>
FIG. 1 is a schematic layout diagram of the transport device A. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the transport device A. The transport device A is arranged in a post-process of a filling device (not shown) for filling the article with the contents. As shown in FIG. 1, the transport device A transports a substantially rectangular parallelepiped article Pc filled with a liquid container inside, packs it in a storage box Bx, and carries it out.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the transport device A includes a carry-in unit 100, a first transport unit 200, a second transport unit 300, a transfer device 400, a boxing unit 500, and a control unit 600 (FIG. 1 and FIG. 2). 2) and an auxiliary transport unit 700. In the transport device A, the article Pc carried out from the filling device (not shown) is carried in through the carry-in unit 100.

The article Pc is sent to the second transport unit 300 after being subjected to a predetermined process by the first transport unit 200. The articles Pc transported to the second transport unit 300 are collected in units of a plurality of articles, then boxed in the storage box Bx by the boxing unit 500 and carried out to the outside. Here, "accumulation" indicates that a plurality of articles Pc are brought into contact with each other adjacent to each other in the transport direction Tr and collected in the transport direction Tr, or a state thereof. The details of each part of the transport device A will be described below.

<Control unit 600>
First, the details of the control unit 600 that integrally controls the transport device A will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 600 includes a processing circuit 601 and a storage circuit 602. The processing circuit 601 is a circuit that processes various types of information, and has an arithmetic circuit such as a CPU and an MPU. Further, the processing circuit 601 controls the control targets included in the first transport unit 200, the second transport unit 300, the transfer device 400, the boxing unit 500, and the sub-conveyor unit 700 based on the processing results.

The storage circuit 602 is a circuit including or connected to a semiconductor memory such as a ROM or RAM, a portable memory such as a flash memory, and a storage medium such as a hard disk. Various programs such as a control program or a processing program may be stored in the storage circuit 602, the program corresponding to the processing may be called as necessary, and the program may be operated by the processing circuit 601 to perform the processing. .. The elements connected to the control unit 600 and their controls will be described when each element is described.

<Carry-in section 100>
As shown in FIG. 1, in the transport device A, the article Pc is carried in from the carry-in unit 100. The carry-in unit 100 includes a carry-in conveyor 11 and a pair of nip rollers 12. The carry-in conveyor 11 is a conveyor that conveys the article Pc filled with the contents by a filling device (not shown). The carry-in conveyor 11 conveys the article Pc with the article Pc placed on the upper surface.

In the carry-in unit 100 of the present embodiment, it is desired to suppress slippage of the article Pc on the upper surface of the carry-in conveyor 11 during normal transportation, and to appropriately slide the article Pc when transferring to the transfer device 400. In order to satisfy such a requirement, the static friction coefficient and the dynamic friction coefficient between the article Pc and the carry-in conveyor 11 (upper surface) need to be appropriate values.

As a result of diligent research, the inventor of the present invention has found that it is preferable to use a top chain conveyor as the carry-in conveyor 11 in order to optimize the above-mentioned static friction coefficient and dynamic friction coefficient. Therefore, in the carry-in unit 100 of the present embodiment, a top chain conveyor is used as the carry-in conveyor 11.

As shown in FIG. 1, the end of the carry-in conveyor 11 on the downstream side of the transport direction Tr is connected to the second curved transport rail 214 of the first transport section 200, which will be described later, via the transfer device 400. The carry-in conveyor 11 has a conveyor motor 111 (see FIG. 2). The conveyor motor 111 is connected to the control unit 600 and is a power source for driving the carry-in conveyor 11 according to an instruction from the control unit 600.

The pair of nip rollers 12 are arranged above the carry-in conveyor 11. The pair of nip rollers 12 can rotate around a central axis extending vertically, and the central axes of each nip roller 12 are arranged in parallel. The pair of nip rollers 12 come into contact with the surface of the article Pc that intersects the transport direction Tr. The surface of the nip roller 12 is made of a material that has high friction with the surface of the article Pc. Therefore, the transportation of the article Pc is controlled by the rotation of the pair of nip rollers 12. That is, the operation of the nip roller 12 adjusts the transfer interval of the article Pc conveyed by the carry-in conveyor 11.

The pair of nip rollers 12 are rotated by a roller motor 121 (see FIG. 2). The roller motor 121 may be provided in each of the nip rollers 12, or the driving force of one roller motor 121 may be transmitted to each nip roller 12 by using a mechanism for transmitting the driving force. As shown in FIG. 2, the roller motor 121 is connected to the control unit 600. The roller motor 121 is driven based on an instruction from the control unit 600.

<First transport unit 200>
Next, the details of the first transport unit 200 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 moving on the first straight transfer rail 211. FIG. 4 is a view seen from the outside of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a view of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 shown in FIG. 3 as viewed from the rear side in the transport direction.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the first transport unit 200 includes a transport rail 21, a first transport shuttle 22, a second transport shuttle 23, and a transport linear motor mechanism 24. Further, a straw sticking portion 25 and a defective product exclusion portion 26 are arranged in the vicinity of the first transport path Tc1. The straw sticking unit 25 and the defective product eliminating unit 26 are examples of processing units that process the article Pc. The processing unit is not limited to these.

The transport rail 21 is formed in a loop shape by connecting both ends. The transport rail 21 has a linear first straight transport rail 211 and a second straight transport rail 212, and a curved first curved transport rail 213 and a second curved transport rail 214 (see FIG. 1).

As shown in FIG. 1, the first transport unit 200 is formed with a first transport path Tc1 in which the article Pc is transported from the transfer device 400 to the transshipment section 37 of the second transport unit 300. The first transport path Tc1 has a straight portion and a curved portion connected to the upstream side and the downstream side of the straight portion in the transport direction. Further, in the first transport unit 200, a return path Tb is formed which is arranged outside the loop of the transport rail 21 and connects the downstream end and the upstream end of the transport direction Tr of the first transport path Tc1.

The transport rail 21 is divided into a main transport region 21m extending along the first transport path Tc1 and a return region 21n extending along the return path Tb. The main transport area 21m is formed by a part of the second curved transport rail 214 on the downstream side in the transport direction, the first straight transport rail 211, and a part of the first curved transport rail 213 on the upstream side in the transport direction. Rail. The return region 21n is formed by a part of the first curved transport rail 213 on the downstream side in the transport direction, the second straight transport rail 212, and a part of the second curved transport rail 214 on the upstream side in the transport direction. ..

Although there is a difference between the first straight transfer rail 211 and the second straight transfer rail 212 and the curved first curved transfer rail 213 and the second curved transfer rail 214, whether they are linear or curved. Other than that, it has the same configuration. Hereinafter, when the distinction is necessary, the display will be distinguished, and when the distinction is not necessary, the transport rail 21 will be described.

<Transport rail 21>
As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the transport rail 21 has a main rail portion 215, a grooved rail portion 216, and a flat rail portion 217. The main rail portion 215 is a cylindrical body having a rectangular cut surface cut along a surface orthogonal to the transport direction Tr. Inside the main rail portion 215, a coil 241 described later of the transfer linear motor mechanism 24 is arranged. The main rail portion 215 is formed of a material through which the magnetic force from the coil 241 is transmitted. Examples of such materials include, but are not limited to, some stainless steels, aluminum and alloys thereof.

The grooved rail portion 216 is arranged above the main rail portion 215. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a gap 218 is formed between the main rail portion 215 and the grooved rail portion 216. The gap 218 has a shape in which a convex portion 229 described later of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 fits. As a result, the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 are guided so as to be movable in the direction along the transfer rail 21.

The grooved rail portion 216 has a concave groove portion 219 recessed from the outer surface in the direction intersecting the transport direction Tr. The groove portion 219 is formed over the entire circumference of the transport rail 21. The grooved rail portion 216 has two groove portions 219. The two groove portions 219 are arranged side by side in the vertical direction.

The flat rail portion 217 is arranged below the main rail portion 215. The flat rail portion 217 has a shape along a vertical line on the outside of the cross section cut at the surface intersecting the transport direction Tr (see FIG. 5 and the like).

The first straight transfer rail 211, the first curved transfer rail 213, the second straight transfer rail 212, and the second curved transfer rail 214 are sequentially connected in the clockwise direction in a plan view. As a result, the transport rail 21 is formed in a loop shape.

In the first transport unit 200 in the present embodiment, the first curved transport rail 213 and the second curved transport rail 214 have an arc shape having the same radius of curvature, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the first curved transport rail 213 and the second curved transport rail 214 may have a curved shape in which curves having a plurality of radii of curvature are combined, or may be partially linear. Further, the curved portion is not limited to the arc shape, and may be a so-called clothoid curved shape. Further, it may have a curved shape other than these.

<First transport shuttle 22 and second transport shuttle 23>
As shown in FIG. 1, the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 move in the clockwise direction in a plan view along the transfer rail 21. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 are arranged on the outer surface of the transfer rail 21 and can move along the transfer rail 21. The first transport shuttle 22 holds the front portion of the article Pc in the transport direction Tr. The second transport shuttle 23 holds the rear portion of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc.

Then, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 move along the first transport path Tc1 while holding the article Pc, thereby transporting the article Pc in the transport direction Tr. That is, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 are examples of transport shuttles that hold the article Pc. The transport shuttle may be configured to be held from the lower surface of the article Pc, for example.

In the first transport unit 200, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 include a main body portion 220 having a common configuration, two upper rollers 223, two lower rollers 224, and a convex portion 229. .. If the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 can move along the transfer rail 21, they may be provided with a main body portion, an upper roller, and a lower roller having different configurations, respectively.

The common parts of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 will be described. A magnet 242, which will be described later, of the transfer linear motor mechanism 24 is arranged on the main body 220. The main body 220 is arranged outside the transport rail 21 so as to face the transport rail 21. The magnet 242 is housed inside the main body 220 and faces the coil 241 arranged in the main rail 215 in a direction intersecting the transport direction Tr.

The main body 220 has a convex portion 229 that projects toward the transport rail 21. The convex portion 229 fits into the gap 218 formed between the main rail portion 215 of the transport rail 21 and the grooved rail portion 216 (see FIG. 5). By fitting the convex portion 229 into the gap 218, the deviation of the main body portion 220 from the transport rail 21 is suppressed.

The two upper rollers 223 are rotatably supported on the upper part of the main body 220. The outer peripheral surface of the upper roller 223 fits with the groove portion 219 of the grooved rail portion 216. The two lower rollers 224 are rotatably supported under the main body 220. The outer peripheral surface of the lower roller 224 comes into contact with the outer surface of the flat rail portion 217.

The main body 220 is attracted to the outer surface of the transport rail 21 by the magnetic force of the magnet 242 arranged inside. The transport rail 21 may be provided with an suction portion made of a metal such as iron that attracts the magnet, or may be attracted by the magnetic force between the iron core provided in the coil 241 and the magnet 242. Further, the main body 220 may be movable along the transport rail 21 and may be attached to the transport rail 21 so as not to easily fall off from the transport rail 21 by using a hook or the like.

Next, the characteristic portion of the first transport shuttle 22 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the first transport shuttle 22 has a first transport support portion 221 attached to the main body portion 220 and two first transport engaging portions 222. The first transport support portion 221 is arranged below the first transport engaging portion 222. The first transport support portion 221 is fixed to the main body portion 220 by screwing. The first transport support portion 221 projects outward from the main body portion 220. The upper surface of the first transport support portion 221 is a horizontal plane.

The first transport support portion 221 has a corner portion 225 behind the transport direction Tr at the outer end portion in a plan view. The corner portion 225 extends behind the transport direction Tr from the arm main body portion 226 described later of the first transport engaging portion 222. Further, the corner portion 225 extends outward from the pressing portion 228 described later of the first transport engaging portion 222 (see FIG. 3).

The two first transport engaging portions 222 are attached to the main body portion 220 vertically apart from each other. The two first transport engaging portions 222 have the same shape, although the arrangement positions in the vertical direction on the main body portion 220 are different. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the first transport engaging portion 222 has an arm main body portion 226, a claw portion 227, and a holding portion 228. The first transport engaging portion 222 is fixed to the main body portion 220 by screwing. The arm main body portion 226 has a flat plate shape orthogonal to the main body portion 220.

The claw portion 227 extends rearward from the outer end portion of the arm main body portion 226 in the transport direction Tr. The holding portion 228 extends rearward from the transport direction Tr from the end portion of the arm main body portion 226 on the side close to the transport rail 21.

The characteristic portion of the second transport shuttle 23 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the second transport shuttle 23 has a second transport support portion 231 attached to the main body portion 220 and two second transport engaging portions 232. The second transport support portion 231 is arranged below the second transport engaging portion 232. The second transport support portion 231 is fixed to the main body portion 220 by screwing. The second transport support portion 231 projects outward from the main body portion 220. The upper surface of the second transport support portion 231 is a horizontal plane.

The second transport support portion 231 has a corner portion 235 in front of the transport direction Tr at the outer end portion in a plan view. The corner portion 235 extends behind the transport direction Tr from the arm main body portion 236 described later of the second transport engaging portion 232. Further, the corner portion 235 extends outward from the pressing portion 238 described later of the second transport engaging portion 232 (see FIG. 3). The two second transport engaging portions 232 are attached to the main body portion 220 vertically apart from each other. The second transport engaging portion 232 corresponds to the first transport engaging portion 222.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the second transport engaging portion 232 includes an arm main body portion 236 corresponding to the arm main body portion 226, a claw portion 237 corresponding to the claw portion 227, and a presser corresponding to the presser portion 228. It has a portion 238 and. The claw portion 227 extends forward from the outer end portion of the arm main body portion 236 in the transport direction Tr. The pressing portion 238 extends forward from the end portion of the arm main body portion 236 on the side close to the transport rail 21 in the transport direction Tr.

When the first transport unit 200 is provided with a guide portion for guiding the transport of the article Pc in the first transport path Tc1, the first transport support portion 221 and the claw portion 227 of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle are provided. The second transport support portion 231 and the claw portion 237 of the 23 may be omitted.

Next, the holding of the article Pc by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 will be described. The control unit 600 can change the relative positions of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 while they are attached to the transfer rail 21.

First, the holding of the article Pc by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 when arranged on the linear first straight transport rail 211 will be described. The same applies when the rail is arranged on the second straight transfer rail 212. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the first transport shuttle 22 holds the front portion of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc, and the second transport shuttle 23 holds the rear portion of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc.

The claw portion 227 of the first transport engaging portion 222 engages with a part of the front end of the surface of the article Pc opposite to the transport rail 21. At the same time, the holding portion 228 engages with a part of the front end of the surface of the article Pc on the transport rail 21 side. The arm main body portion 226 comes into contact with a part of the front surface of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc.

Similarly, the claw portion 237 of the second transport engaging portion 232 engages with a part of the rear end of the surface of the article Pc opposite to the transport rail 21. At the same time, the holding portion 238 engages with a part of the rear end of the surface of the article Pc on the transport rail 21 side. The arm main body portion 236 comes into contact with a part of the rear surface of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, in the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 attached to the transport rail 21, the arm main body portion 226 of the first transport engaging portion 222 has two vertical positions. It is between the arm main body portion 236 of the second transport engaging portion 232, and for example, the vertical position of the arm main body portion 226 of the lower first transport engaging portion 222 is the lower second transport engaging portion 232. It is below the arm main body 236, and the vertical position of the arm main body 226 of the upper first transport engaging portion 222 is lower than the arm main body 236 of the upper second transport engaging portion 232.

As shown in FIG. 4, by arranging each arm main body portion 226 of the first transport engaging portion 222 below each arm main body portion 236 of the second transport engaging portion 232, the article Pc can be combined with the transport rail 21. A space is formed on the opposite surface from the upper front side to the lower rear side in the transport direction Tr. Therefore, even if the claw portion 227 of the first transport engaging portion 222 and the claw portion 227 of the second transport engaging portion 232 engage with the surface opposite to the transport rail 21 of the article Pc, the transport rail 21 of the article Pc On the surface opposite to the above, a region to which the straw Th can be attached is formed.

The upper surface of the first transport support portion 221 and the upper surface of the second transport support portion 231 are preferably, but not limited to, flush with each other. The article Pc may be tilted in the transport direction Tr by shifting it up and down.

While the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 are holding the article Pc, the corners 225 of the first transport support portion 221 and the corner portions 235 of the second transport support portion 231 are inside the bottom surface of the article Pc. Supports the front and rear corners of the transport direction Tr.

The bottom surface of the article Pc is supported at the front and rear corners of the portion close to the transport rail 21. Therefore, a force may act on the upper part of the article Pc in the direction of falling outward. However, the claw portion 227 of the first transport engaging portion 222 engages with a part of the front end of the surface opposite to the transport rail 21 of the article Pc, and the claw portion 237 of the second transport engaging portion 232 is the article Pc. Since it is configured to engage with a part of the rear end of the surface opposite to the transport rail 21, the fall of the article Pc is suppressed.

Further, a part of the front surface of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc comes into contact with the arm main body portion 226, and a part of the rear surface of the article Pc in the transport direction Tr comes into contact with the arm main body portion 236. As a result, it is possible to suppress the movement of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc at the start or stop of the movement of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23.

As described above, when the article Pc is held by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23, the downward movement of the article Pc is performed by the first transport support portion 221 (corner portion 225) and the second transport support portion. It is supported by 231 (corner 235). Therefore, the first transport engaging portion 222 and the second transport engaging portion 232 need only be in contact with, that is, engaged with, the side surface of the article Pc. Therefore, the first transport engaging portion 222 and the second transport engaging portion 232 do not need to strongly press the article Pc.

As described above, by using the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23, even a soft and fragile article PC such as a paper container containing a liquid inside can be reliably and safely used. The front part and the rear part of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc can be held.

In the first transport unit 200, the first transport path Tc1 to which the article Pc is transported has a curved portion. The first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 holding the article Pc move along the curved portion of the first transport path Tc1, that is, the first curved transport rail 213 or the second curved transport rail 214.

Hereinafter, the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23, which move along the first curved transfer rail 213 as a representative, will be described with reference to the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a state in which the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 holding the article Pc are moving along the first curved transport rail 213.

In the first transport shuttle 22, the angle of the arm main body 226 with respect to the transport direction Tr is fixed. Further, in the second transport shuttle 23, the angle of the arm main body portion 236 with respect to the transport direction Tr is fixed. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, when the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 are on the first curved transport rail 213, the control unit 600 controls the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23. The distance in the direction along the one-curve transfer rail 213 is controlled to be shorter than the distance when moving along the first straight transfer rail 211.

By controlling in this way, the distance of the transport direction Tr of the distance between the outer ends of the arm body 226 and the arm body 236 is shortened, and the claw 227 and the claw 237 transport the article Pc on the first curve. It can engage part of the front end and part of the rear end of the surface opposite the rail 213. Therefore, the article Pc can be firmly held by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 that move along the first curved transport rail 213.

Further, since the claw portion 227 and the claw portion 237 are configured to engage with a part of the surface of the article Pc opposite to the first curved transport rail 213, it occurs when moving along the first curved transport rail 213. The centrifugal force to be applied can be received by the claw portion 227 and the claw portion 237. As a result, even when the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 move along the first curved transport rail 213, it is possible to prevent the article Pc from popping out or falling.

<Transfer linear motor mechanism 24>
On the transport rail 21, a plurality of first transport shuttles 22 and the same number of second transport shuttles 23 as the first transport shuttle 22 are alternately arranged along the transport direction Tr. The transfer linear motor mechanism 24 can independently drive each first transfer shuttle 22 and each second transfer shuttle 23.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the transport linear motor mechanism 24 has a plurality of coils 241, a magnet 242, and a linear driver 243 (see FIG. 2). The plurality of coils 241 are arranged along the loop shape inside the transport rail 21 arranged in the loop shape.

The magnet 242 is a permanent magnet and is arranged on the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23. As shown in FIG. 5, the magnet 242 is arranged inside the main body 220. The magnet 242 is arranged so as to be able to apply a magnetic force to the coil 241. A linear motor is formed by a magnet 242 arranged on the main body 220 and a plurality of coils 241 arranged inside the transport rail 21.

The linear driver 243 is connected to each coil 241. The linear driver 243 is connected to a power supply circuit (not shown). The linear driver 243 is a circuit that controls the electric power supplied to the coil 241 and includes a circuit such as an arithmetic processing circuit and a power supply circuit that adjusts the voltage and current supplied to each coil 241. The linear driver 243 supplies an appropriate current to each coil 241. The linear driver 243 receives information on the operation of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 (including information such as moving speed and timing) from the control unit 600, and supplies electric power to the appropriate coil 241 from the information. do. Further, the exciting coil information Im, which is the information of the coil 241 that has supplied the electric power to the linear driver 243, is sent to the control unit 600.

<Straw sticking part 25>
The straw sticking portion 25 is arranged close to the straight portion of the first transport path Tc1. The straw sticking portion 25 sticks a straw Th (see FIGS. 3 to 5 and the like) on the surface of the article Pc held by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 on the opposite side to the transport rail 21. The straw Th is attached to the surface of the article Pc opposite to the transport rail 21 in a state of being stored in a resin bag. The straw Th can be attached by using, for example, a hot melt, an adhesive, or the like, but other methods may be used.

Depending on the article PC, the straw Th may not be attached. In this case, the straw sticking portion 25 may be omitted. Further, when a long object other than the straw Th is attached to the article Pc, it may be attached using the straw attaching portion 25.

<Defective product exclusion unit 26>
The article Pc is completed by attaching the straw Th at the straw attaching portion 25. The first transport unit 200 inspects the appearance of the article Pc transported along the first transport path Tc1, for example, the pasted state of the bottom surface, the top surface, and the like by an inspection unit (not shown). Then, the result of the inspection from the inspection unit is sent to the control unit 600. The processing circuit 601 of the control unit 600 determines whether the product is non-defective or defective based on the inspection result.

The defective product exclusion unit 26 discharges the article Pc determined to be a defective product to the outside of the transport route. The defective product exclusion unit 26 is arranged on the downstream side of the transport direction Tr of the first straight transport rail 211 of the transport rail 21. The defective product exclusion unit 26 includes an exclusion conveyor 261 arranged below the transport rail 21. The exclusion conveyor 261 is arranged so that it can be conveyed toward the outside of the transfer route. Then, the defective articles held by the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 are placed on the lower exclusion conveyor 261 and the defective articles are conveyed by driving the exclusion conveyor 261. Discharge outside the route.

The defective product exclusion unit 26 according to the present embodiment uses an exclusion conveyor 261 arranged below the transport rail 21, but is not limited to this. For example, a mechanism for pushing a defective article to the outside of the transport route may be adopted. Also in this case, the relative distance between the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 may be widened to release the holding, and then the article may be pushed.

The first transport unit 200 has the configuration shown above.

<Transfer device 400>
The transfer device 400 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state in which the transfer device 400 is executing the transfer of the article Pc. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the transfer device 400. FIG. 9 is a plan view of the transfer device 400.

The transfer device 400 receives the article Pc conveyed on the carry-in conveyor 11, conveys the article Pc along the transfer path Ta1, and then transfers the article Pc to the first transfer unit 200. The transfer device 400 receives the article Pc in the receiving area Ar1 at the upstream end of the transfer direction Tr of the transfer path Ta1, and receives the article Pc in the transfer area Ar2 at the downstream end of the transfer direction Tr of the transfer path Ta1. 1 Transfer to the transport unit 200 (see FIGS. 7, 9, etc.). In the transfer device 400, the receiving area Ar1 and the transfer area Ar2 are always constant regardless of the article Pc.

As shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, the transfer device 400 moves the article Pc along the arc-shaped transfer path Ta1 centered on the central axis C1. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 9, the upstream end of the transfer path Ta1 of the transfer device 400 in the transport direction and the downstream end of the carry-in conveyor 11 in the transport direction Tr are connected to each other. More specifically, the transport direction Tr of the carry-in conveyor 11 overlaps with the tangential direction at the upstream end of the transport direction Tr of the transfer path Ta1. With this configuration, it is possible to transfer to the transfer route Ta1 while suppressing the force applied to the article Pc placed on the upper surface of the carry-in conveyor 11.

The transfer device 400 has four pushers 41, four holding members 42, a moving mechanism 43, and a guide portion 44.

<Pusher 41>
The pusher 41 pushes the article Pc along the transfer path Ta1 in the transport direction Tr. The pusher 41 can move along the circumferential movement path Ta2 centered on the central axis C1 and partly coincides with the transfer path Ta1. All four pushers 41 have the same shape. The pusher 41 is L-shaped in a plan view and has a first push portion 411 and a second push portion 412.

The first push portion 411 extends along the transport direction Tr of the movement path Ta2 (see FIG. 9), that is, in the tangential direction of the circle centered on the central axis C1. The first push portions 411 are all arranged so as to form the same angle with respect to the central axis C1. The first push portion 411 supports an inner surface in a direction intersecting the transport direction Tr of the article Pc moving in the transfer path Ta1. When the first push portion 411 comes into contact with the article Pc, the change in posture of the article moving on the transfer path Ta1 with respect to the central axis C1 is suppressed.

The second push portion 412 is integrated with the first push portion 411 and extends radially outward with respect to the central axis C1 from the rear of the transport direction Tr of the first push portion 411. The second push portion 412 prepared as a separate member may be fixed to the first push portion 411. The second push portion 412 comes into contact with the rear surface of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc transported in the transfer path Ta1. That is, the article Pc transported on the transfer path Ta1 is mainly pushed from the second push portion 412 in the transport direction Tr.

For example, if the article Pc can be stably conveyed in the transfer path Ta1 by being guided by the guide portion 44, the first push portion 411 may be omitted. That is, the pusher 41 can be configured to be able to push at least the rear surface of the article Pc in the transport direction Tr.

<Holding member 42>
Each of the four holding members 42 is an annular shape centered on the central axis C1 and is rotatably arranged along the central axis C1. Each of the four holding members 42 is rotatable about the central axis C1 and is arranged so as to be vertically stacked along the central axis C1. The holding member 42 has a mounting portion 420 and an internal gear 421.

The mounting portion 420 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the holding member 42. A pusher 41 is attached to the attachment portion 420. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the mounting portion 420 other than the mounting portion 420 of the holding member 42 in the second stage from the top extends in the direction of the central axis C1. The tip portion in the C1 axial direction overlaps with the outer peripheral surface of the second-stage holding member 42 in the radial direction.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the pusher 41 is attached to a portion of each attachment portion 420 that radially overlaps with the second-stage holding member 42. Further, each pusher 41 is attached to each attachment portion 420 so that the positions of the first push portion 411 and the second push portion 412 with respect to the central axis C1 are the same in the circumferential direction and the radial direction. By being attached in this way, the movement paths Ta2 of each pusher 41 match.

The transfer device 400 of the present embodiment has four pushers 41 and four holding members 42, but is not limited thereto. The number of pushers 41 may be set according to the frequency of changing the conveyed article Pc, the rotation speed of the pushers 41, and the like. As the number of pushers 41 increases, it is necessary to increase the outer diameter of the holding member 42, which increases the size of the transfer device 400. Therefore, the number of pushers 41 is preferably the minimum required number according to the number of articles Pc, or a few more than that. The number of holding members 42 is the same as the number of pushers 41, and is determined by the number of pushers 41.

The internal gear 421 is arranged on a peripheral surface without an annular holding member 42. The internal gear 421 is connected to the moving mechanism 43, and the driving force from the moving mechanism 43 is transmitted.

<Movement mechanism 43>
The moving mechanism 43 has four drive motors 431 (see FIGS. 2 and 7), four drive shafts 432 (see FIGS. 8 and 9), and four pinion gears 433 (see FIG. 9). .. The number of the drive motor 431, the drive shaft 432, and the pinion gear 433 is the same as that of the holding member 42, that is, the pusher 41.

As shown in FIG. 8, each of the four drive shafts 432 extends along the central axis C1 and the lower end thereof is arranged inside the holding member 42. The four drive shafts 432 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction about the central axis C1.

Each of the four pinion gears 433 is mounted at the lower end of a different drive shaft 432. Fixing of the pinion gear 433 to the drive shaft 432 may include, but is not limited to, press fitting, welding, screwing, and the like. A fixing method for firmly fixing the pinion gear 433 to the drive shaft 432 can be widely adopted.

The four pinion gears 433 are arranged at different positions in the central axis C1 direction, respectively. Each pinion gear 433 meshes with the internal gear 421 of a different holding member 42, respectively.

The upper ends of the four drive shafts 432 in the central axis C1 direction are connected to different drive motors 431. Each of the four drive motors 431 supplies a driving force for rotating different drive shafts 432. That is, the four pinion gears 433 are connected to different drive motors 431 via different drive shafts 432, respectively. As shown in FIG. 7, the drive motor 431 is attached to the lid portion 45 arranged above the holding member 42 in the direction along the central axis C1. The lid portion 45 also plays a role of preventing foreign matter from entering the inside of the holding member 42.

As the drive motor 431 rotates, the drive shaft 432 and the pinion gear 433 rotate. Then, the holding member 42 provided with the internal tooth gear 421 to which the pinion gear 433 meshes rotates. That is, each of the four holding members 42 is rotated by an independent dedicated drive motor 431. Each of the drive motors 431 is connected to the control unit 600 (see FIG. 2), and is independently driven based on an instruction from the control unit 600. As a result, since the holding members 42 can rotate independently, the pushers 41 can also independently move along the circumferential movement path Ta2 centered on the central axis C1. ..

In the moving mechanism 43 of the present embodiment, a mechanism using an internal tooth gear and a pinion gear arranged on the inner surface of the holding member is adopted, but the mechanism is not limited to this. For example, a configuration in which the holding member can be operated independently, such as a configuration in which a holding member is fixed to each of a plurality of hollow shafts arranged on concentric shafts and each hollow shaft is rotated independently, can be widely adopted.

A part of the movement route Ta2 overlaps with the transfer route Ta1. That is, the pusher 41 always passes through the transfer path Ta1 when making one round of the movement path Ta2. The pusher 41 contacts the article Pc in the receiving area Ar1 and pushes the article Pc so that the article Pc is conveyed in the transfer path Ta1. The timing between the pusher 41 and the article Pc will be described later.

<Guide section 44>
The guide unit 44 guides the article Pc moving along the transfer path Ta1. The guide portion 44 has a bottom surface guide 441 and a side surface guide 442. As shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, the bottom surface guide 441 has a certain width in the radial direction about the central axis C1 and extends along the transfer path Ta1. In the transfer device 400, the article Pc moves from the upper part of the carry-in conveyor 11 to the upper surface of the bottom guide. That is, in the transfer device 400, the bottom surface guide 441 supports the bottom surface of the article Pc moving in the transfer path Ta1.

The upstream side of the transfer path Ta1 of the bottom guide 441 in the transport direction is close to the carry-in conveyor 11. The bottom guides 441 are arranged at intervals so that the article Pc does not get caught when the article Pc moves from the carry-in conveyor 11. Since the gap is formed as narrow as described above, it is possible to prevent the article Pc from losing its posture or tipping over when the article Pc moves from the carry-in conveyor 11 onto the bottom guide 441. The upper surface of the bottom guide 441 may be lower than the upper surface of the carry-in conveyor 11 so as not to lose its posture when the article Pc moves.

The side guide 442 has a strip shape having a constant width in the direction of the central axis C1. The side guide 442 has an arc shape extending along the radial outer edge of the transfer path Ta1 when viewed in the direction of the central axis C1. The side guide 442 comes into contact with at least a portion of the radial outer side of the article Pc moving along the transfer path Ta1. As a result, when the article Pc moves along the arcuate transfer path Ta1, the side guide 442 contacts a part of the side surface of the article Pc and suppresses the movement of the article Pc outward in the radial direction due to centrifugal force. ..

In the first transport path Tc1 described later of the first transport unit 200, the article Pc is transported in a state of being held in the front and rear in the transport direction by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 described later. In the transfer device 400, the article Pc conveyed in the transfer path Ta1 is delivered to the first transfer unit 200 in the transfer area Ar2 (see FIGS. 7 and 9). That is, in the transfer device 400, the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 hold the article Pc being transported on the transfer route Ta1 when passing through a part of the transfer route Ta1.

More specifically, when the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 hold the article Pc in the receiving area Ar1, the bottom surface of the article Pc is the first transport support portion 221 and the first transport support portion 221, which will be described later, of the first transport shuttle 22. 2 It is supported by the second transport support portion 231 described later of the transport shuttle 23. Therefore, the upper surface of the bottom surface guide 441 is flush with the upper surfaces of the first transport support portion 221 and the second transport support portion 231 and is arranged at a position where they do not interfere with each other.

In the first transport path Tc1, the article Pc moves before and after the transport direction Tr at the first transport engaging portion 222 described later of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport engaging portion 232 described later of the second transport shuttle 23. Be retained. Therefore, the position of the side guide 442 in the direction along the central axis C1 is such that it does not interfere with the first transport support portion 221 and the first transport engaging portion 222, the second transport support portion 231 and the second transport engaging portion 232. Arranged.

As described above, the article Pc is pushed by the pusher 41 when it is conveyed in the transfer path Ta1. Therefore, the central axis C1 of the four holding members 42 so that the pusher 41 does not interfere with the first transport support portion 221 and the first transport engagement portion 222, the second transport support portion 231 and the second engagement support portion 232. The position in the direction along the is determined (see FIG. 7).

<Operation of transfer device 400>
The article Pc carried in by the carry-in conveyor 11 is transferred to the first transport unit 200 via the transfer device 400.

The article Pc arranged and conveyed on the carry-in conveyor 11 is temporarily stopped on the carry-in conveyor 11 by a pair of nip rollers 12. Then, the articles Pc are sent out one by one by a pair of nip rollers 12 in the transport direction of the carry-in conveyor 11 at predetermined intervals. In the carry-in section 100, the articles Pc are sent out at a certain interval by the operation of the pair of nip rollers 12. However, the transfer interval of the article Pc may vary due to variations in the friction coefficient, rotation speed, etc. of the surface of each nip roller 12.

The control unit 600 controls the drive motor 431 so that the pusher 41 can start pushing the article Pc at the timing when the article Pc placed on the carry-in conveyor 11 and conveyed reaches the receiving area Ar1.

Further explaining, a part of the movement route Ta2 overlaps with the transfer route Ta1. That is, the pusher 41 always passes through the transfer path Ta1 when making one round of the movement path Ta2. The control unit 600 controls the drive motor 431 to match the timing at which the pusher 41 reaches the transfer path Ta1 with the position of the article Pc on the carry-in conveyor 11. As a result, the pusher 41 moving on the transfer path Ta1 can always push the article Pc on the carry-in conveyor 11.

With such a configuration, the pusher 41 can surely push the article Pc even if the transport interval of the article Pc is deviated or not constant. By moving the pusher 41 in accordance with the timing of transporting the article Pc, it is possible to prevent the pusher 41 that does not push the article Pc (hereinafter, may be referred to as an empty pusher) from passing through the transfer route Ta1.

In the transfer device 400 of the present embodiment, the pusher is held by the annular holding member, but the pusher is not limited to this. For example, a pusher may be fixed to the radial outer end of the holding member extending radially from the central axis C1, and the holding members may be independently rotated around the central axis C1. A configuration in which the pushers 41 can be independently moved along the movement path Ta2 can be widely adopted.

In the transfer device 400, the speed of the pusher 41 can be changed, and the transfer speed of the article Pc transported in the transfer path Ta1 can be freely changed within a certain range. When the intervals of the articles carried in from the carry-in conveyor 11 vary, it is possible to adjust the transport speed of the articles Pc in the transfer path Ta1 so that the first transport unit 200 transfers at regular intervals.

For example, in the transfer path Ta1, when the distance from the previously conveyed article Pc is long, the control unit 600 controls the drive motor 431 so as to accelerate the pusher 41 to close the distance. On the contrary, when the interval is narrow, the control unit 600 controls the drive motor 431 so that the pusher 41 decelerates to increase the interval. By doing so, the article Pc can be transported to the transfer area Ar2 at regular intervals, and the article can be transferred to the first transport unit 200 at regular intervals.

As a result, in the first transport unit 200, it is possible to suppress a sudden change in speed of the mechanism for transporting the article Pc, here, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23. As a result, heat generation of the transport linear motor mechanism 24 can be suppressed, and deterioration of the first transport unit 200 can be suppressed.

A sensor (not shown) for detecting the position of the article Pc is provided on the downstream side of the nip roller 12 at a position close to the carry-in conveyor 11, and the drive motor 431 is operated based on the detection state of the article Pc by the sensor. The pusher 41 may be brought into contact with the article Pc accurately. By doing so, it is possible to further improve the accuracy of transferring articles in the transfer device 400.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the transfer device 400a of the modified example. The transfer device 400a shown in FIG. 10 has a different configuration of the pusher 41a, but has the same configuration as the transfer device 400 shown in FIGS. 7 to 9 except for the configuration. Therefore, substantially the same parts as the transfer device 400 are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description of the same parts will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 10, in the pusher 41a of the transfer device 400a, the second pushing portion 412 is extended, and the side holding portion 413 extending in front of the transport direction Tr from the radially outer end portion of the second pushing portion 412. Have.

In the pusher 41a, when the second push portion 412 comes into contact with the rear surface of the article Pc in the transport direction Tr, the side surface holding portion 413 comes into contact with the radial outer surface of the article Pc. As a result, the centrifugal force of the article Pc is received by the side surface holding portion 413. Therefore, in the transfer device 400a, the side guide 442 of the guide portion 44 can be omitted. The side surface holding portion 413 has an inclined inner surface in the radial direction. By forming in this way, it is possible to reliably contact the outer surface of the article Pc without imposing a burden on the article Pc.

<Second transport unit 300>
Next, the second transport unit 300 arranged after the first transport unit 200 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 11 is a plan view showing a state in which the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33 according to the present invention hold the integrated article Pc4. FIG. 12 is a view seen from the outside of the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33 shown in FIG. FIG. 13 is a view of the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33 shown in FIG. 11 as viewed from the rear side in the transport direction. The upstream of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2 of the second transport unit 300 is the integration device.

As shown in FIG. 1, the second transport unit 300 is arranged close to the downstream end of the transport direction Tr of the first transport path Tc1 of the first transport unit 200. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 11 to 13, the second transport unit 300 includes an integrated rail 31, a first integrated shuttle 32, a second integrated shuttle 33, and an integrated linear motor mechanism 34. It has a transport unit 35, a guide unit 36, and a transshipment unit 37.

The integrated rail 31 and the integrated linear motor mechanism 34 have substantially the same configuration as the conveyor rail 21 and the integrated linear motor mechanism 34 of the first transport unit 200. Therefore, each part of the integrated rail 31 and the integrated linear motor mechanism 34 will be compared with the corresponding parts of the transfer rail 21 and the transfer linear motor mechanism 24, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

<Second transport path Tc2>
As shown in FIG. 1, a second transport path Tc2 for transporting the article Pc is formed in the second transport unit 300. The second transport path Tc2 is linear. An integrated transport unit 35 is arranged at the upstream end of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2. Further, the guide portion 36 is also arranged in the second transport path Tc2.

<Integrated rail 31>
As shown in FIG. 1, the integrated rail 31 is a first straight integrated rail corresponding to each of the first straight transfer rail 211, the second straight transfer rail 212, the first curved transfer rail 213, and the second curved transfer rail 214. It has 311 and a second straight integrated rail 312, a first curved integrated rail 313 and a second curved integrated rail 314. The first linear integrated rail 311 extends along the second transport path Tc2. Hereinafter, when the distinction is necessary, the distinction is displayed, and when the distinction is not necessary, the integrated rail 31 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 13, the integrated rail 31 has a main rail portion 315, a grooved rail portion 316, and a flat rail portion 317 corresponding to each of the main rail portion 215, the grooved rail portion 216, and the flat rail portion 217. A gap 318 is formed between the main rail portion 315 and the grooved rail portion 316. The gap 318 corresponds to the gap 218. Further, a groove portion 319 is formed on the outer surface of the grooved rail portion 316. The groove portion 319 corresponds to the groove portion 219.

<Integrated linear motor mechanism 34>
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 13, the integrated linear motor mechanism 34 corresponds to the coil 241 of the transfer linear motor mechanism 24, the magnet 242 and the linear driver 243, and the coil 341, the magnet 342 and the linear driver 343 (see FIG. 2). Has. As shown in FIG. 2, the linear driver 343 is connected to the control unit 600 and supplies an appropriate current to each coil 341 based on the instruction from the control unit 600. As shown in FIG. 13, the coil 341 is arranged in the main rail portion 315 of the integrated rail 31. The magnet 342 is arranged on the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33.

<1st integrated shuttle 32 and 2nd integrated shuttle 33>
As shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33 are arranged on the outer surface of the integrated rail 31 and can move along the integrated rail 31.

In the second transport unit 300, the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33 include a main body unit 320, an upper roller 323, a lower roller 324, and a convex portion 329 having a common configuration. The main body 320 corresponds to the main body 220 of the first transport shuttle 22. The upper roller 323 and the lower roller 324 correspond to the upper roller 223 and the lower roller 224 of the first transfer shuttle 22. The convex portion 329 corresponds to the convex portion 229. Therefore, detailed description of the main body portion 320, the upper roller 323, and the lower roller 324 convex portion 329 will be omitted. A magnet 342 of the integrated linear motor mechanism 34 is arranged on the main body 320.

The first integrated shuttle 32 is attached to the main body 320 and has two first integrated engaging portions 321 extending outward from the main body 320. The two first integrated engaging portions 321 are vertically separated from each other on the main body portion 320 (see FIGS. 12 and 13).

As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the first integrated engaging portion 321 has a second integrated contact surface 325. The second integrated contact surface 325 is a surface behind the transport direction Tr. The second integrated contact surface 325 extends in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction Tr. The second integrated contact surface 325 is not limited to being orthogonal to the transport direction Tr, and may have an angle other than 90 ° with respect to the transport direction Tr.

The second integrated shuttle 33 is attached to the main body 320 and has two second integrated engaging portions 331 extending outward from the main body 320. The two second integrated engaging portions 331 are vertically separated from each other on the main body portion 320 (see FIGS. 12 and 13).

As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the second integrated engaging portion 331 has a second integrated contact surface 335. The second integrated contact surface 335 is a surface in front of the transport direction Tr. The second integrated contact surface 335 extends in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction Tr. The second integrated contact surface 335 is not limited to being orthogonal to the transport direction Tr, and may have an angle other than 90 ° with respect to the transport direction Tr.

When the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33 are lined up in the transport direction Tr, the second integrated contact surface 325 of the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated contact surface 335 of the second integrated shuttle 33 are Facing the transport direction Tr.

In the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33, the transport direction Trs of the four article PCs in which adjacent article PCs are in contact with each other (hereinafter referred to as “accumulated”) along the transport direction Tr are transferred to the transport direction Tr. Hold it by sandwiching it from the front and back. That is, in the second transport unit 300, after accumulating the four articles Pc, the four articles Pc that have been accumulated are moved to the transport direction Tr with the front end and the rear end of the transport direction Tr supported.

In the second transport unit 300, the first integrated shuttle 32 supports the article Pc at the most downstream side in the transport direction Tr from the downstream side of the transport direction Tr of the four stacked articles Pc. As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the first integrated contact surface 325 of the first integrated engaging portion 321 of the first integrated shuttle 32 comes into contact with the downstream surface of the article Pc at the most downstream of the transport direction Tr.

In the second transport unit 300, the second integrated shuttle 33 supports the most upstream article Pc in the transport direction Tr from the upstream side of the transport direction Tr of the four stacked articles Pc. As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the second integrated contact surface 335 of the second integrated engaging portion 331 of the second integrated shuttle 33 comes into contact with the upstream surface of the article Pc at the most downstream side of the transport direction Tr.

The first integrated engaging portion 321 and the second integrated engaging portion 331 are provided with claw portions such as the claw portion 227 of the first transport engaging portion 222 and the claw portion 237 of the second transport engaging portion 232. You may.

<Integrated transport unit 35>
Next, the integrated transfer unit 35 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 14 is an enlarged plan view of the second transport unit 300 in a state where the articles Pc are accumulated.

As shown in FIG. 14, the plurality of articles Pc are accumulated in the upper part of the accumulation transport unit 35. The integrated transport unit 35 is arranged along the second transport path Tc2 at the upstream end of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2. The integrated transport unit 35 transports the article Pc in the transport direction Tr with the article Pc placed on the upper portion. In the second transport unit 300, the integrated transport unit 35 employs a top chain conveyor, but the transfer mechanism is not limited to this and can move the article Pc placed on the upper portion in the transport direction Tr. Can be widely adopted.

<Guide part 36>
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 14, the guide portion 36 is arranged along the second transport path Tc2. The guide portion 36 has a bottom surface guide 361 and a side surface guide 362. The bottom surface guide 361 comes into contact with the bottom surface of the article Pc transported along the second transport path Tc2 and supports the bottom surface. The bottom surface guide 361 is arranged on the downstream side of the transport direction Tr of the integrated transport unit 35 in the second transport path Tc2.

The article Pc is transported by the integrated transport unit 35 on the upstream side of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2. The article Pc transported by the integrated transport unit 35 moves from the downstream end of the transport direction Tr of the integrated transport unit 35 to the upper part of the bottom guide 361. At this time, the bottom surface guide 361 is close to the downstream end of the transport direction Tr of the integrated transport unit 35 so that the article Pc does not tip over or tilt, and the upper surface is the upper surface of the integrated transport unit 35. Set to the same height.

The height of the upper surface of the bottom surface guide 361 may be lower than the upper surface of the integrated transport unit 35 so that the article Pc does not tip over or tilt. Further, if the bottom surface of the article Pc can be supported by the first integration shuttle 32 and the second integration shuttle 33, the bottom surface guide 361 may be omitted.

The side surface guide 362 contacts both sides of the side surface of the article Pc facing in the direction intersecting the transport direction Tr in the second transport path Tc2, and guides the side surface of the article Pc moving in the transport direction Tr. The side guide 362 is arranged in parallel with the article Pc in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction Tr.

As a result, the article Pc is conveyed to the transport direction Tr with the front surface and the rear surface of the transport direction Tr always kept at a constant angle with respect to the transport direction Tr. In the vertical direction, the side guide 362 is vertically displaced from the first integrated engagement portion 321 of the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated engaging portion 331 of the second integrated shuttle 33. In the guide portion 36, the side guides 362 are each having three side guides 362 sandwiching the article Pc, but the guide portion 36 is not limited to this. Further, the number of side guides 362 arranged inside the loop shape of the integrated rail 31 and the number of outside side guides 362 may or may not be the same.

As described above, when the article Pc is held by the first integration shuttle 32 and the second integration shuttle 33, the downward movement of the article Pc is supported by the bottom guide 361. Therefore, the first integrated engaging portion 321 and the second integrated engaging portion 331 need only come into contact with the side surface of the article Pc. Therefore, the first integrated engaging portion 321 and the second integrated engaging portion 331 do not need to strongly press the integrated article Pc4.

Therefore, by using the first integration shuttle 32 and the second integration shuttle 33, even a soft and fragile article Pc such as a paper container containing a liquid inside can be reliably and safely integrated. The front part and the rear part of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc4 can be held.

<Transshipment section 37>
As shown in FIG. 14, the transshipment unit 37 moves the article Pc from the first transport path Tc1 to the second transport path Tc2. The transshipment section 37 includes six pushers 371, a holding member 372, a drive motor 373 (see FIG. 2), and a guide section 374. The six pushers 371 have the same configuration as the pushers 41 of the transfer device 400. That is, the pusher 371 is L-shaped in a plan view and has a first push portion 375 corresponding to the first push portion 411 and a second push portion 376 corresponding to the second push portion 412.

In the transshipment section 37, six pushers 371 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical holding member 372. The holding member 372 is rotatable around the central axis C2. As the holding member 372 rotates, the pusher 371 rotates around the central axis C2. The drive motor 373 is connected to the control unit 600 and rotates the holding member 372 according to an instruction from the control unit 600. In the transshipment unit 37, the article Pc is pushed by the pusher 371 and transported along the circumferential transshipment transport path Td.

As shown in FIG. 14, the downstream end portion of the transport direction Tr of the first transport path Tc1 and the upstream end portion of the transport direction Tr of the transshipment transport path Td overlap. The portion where the downstream end portion of the transport direction Tr of the first transport path Tc1 and the upstream end portion of the transport direction Tr of the transshipment transport path Td overlap is defined as the transshipment start region As1. Further, the downstream end portion of the transshipment transport path Td in the transport direction and the upstream end portion of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2 overlap. The portion where the downstream end portion of the transshipment transport path Td in the transport direction and the upstream end portion of the transport method Tr of the second transport path Tc2 overlap is defined as the transshipment end region As2.

The control unit 600 operates the drive motor 373 so that the pusher 371 comes into contact with the article Pc at the timing when the article Pc held by the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 reaches the transshipment start region As1. .. Then, when the article Pc reaches the transshipment start region As1, the control unit 600 sends an instruction to the transfer linear motor mechanism 24 so that the first transfer shuttle 22 is separated from the article Pc on the downstream side of the transport direction Tr. Control. Further, the second transport shuttle 23 is controlled so as to be separated from the article Pc on the upstream side of the transport direction Tr.

By controlling the article Pc in this way, the article Pc is pushed by the pusher 371 and transported in the transshipment transport path Td. Then, after being transported in the transshipment transport path Td and reaching the transshipment end region As2, the article Pc is transported by the integrated transport unit 35, separated from the pusher 371, and transshipped to the second transport path Tc2.

In the first transport unit 200, the article Pc is held and transported by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23, which can move independently, respectively. Therefore, until the article Pc reaches the transshipment section 37, the article Pc can be conveyed at regular intervals, that is, at equal intervals, and can be conveyed to the transshipment section 37 at regular intervals. As a result, even if the pushers 371 are arranged on the holding member 372 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, the articles Pc to be conveyed at regular intervals can be pushed.

The transshipment unit 37 of the present embodiment is configured to include six pushers 371, but is not limited to this, and may be less than or more than six. Further, as the transshipment unit 37, similarly to the transfer device 400, a plurality of pushers 41 may have a configuration in which they can operate independently and independently. By doing so, it is possible to stably transship the article Pc to the second transport path Tc2 even when the interval of transport of the article Pc transported in the first transport path Tc1 varies.

The guide portion 374 has the same configuration as the guide portion 44. That is, the guide portion 374 has a bottom surface guide 377 corresponding to the bottom surface guide 441, and a side surface guide 378 corresponding to the side surface guide 442. The bottom guide 377 holds the bottom of the article Pc transported along the transshipment transport path Td, and the centrifugal force is guided by the side guide 378. Then, the bottom guide 377 is connected to the integrated transport unit 35.

The upper surface of the bottom guide 377 is flush with the upper surface of the integrated transport unit 35. As a result, when the article Pc moves from the bottom surface guide 377 to the integrated transport unit 35, it is possible to prevent the article Pc from tipping over or tilting. If the article Pc does not fall or tilt, the upper surface of the bottom surface guide 377 may be above the upper surface of the integrated transport unit 35.

Further, the side guide 378 is connected to the side guide 362 of the guide portion 36. As a result, the article Pc conveyed by the transshipment unit 37 is smoothly transshipped to the second transfer unit 300. In the vertical direction, the side surface guide 378 is arranged at a position that does not interfere with the first integrated engaging portion 321 and the second integrated engaging portion 331.

Although the details will be described later, in the first transport unit 200, the first transport shaft 22 and the second transport shaft 23 are moved to the return region 21n while the article Pc is held by the first transport shaft 22 and the second transport shaft 23. In some cases, return control is performed. When performing return control, the side guide 378 of the guide portion 374 may be an obstacle.

Therefore, in the guide portion 374, the upper surface of the bottom guide 377 is arranged so as to be lower than the upper surface of the first transport support portion 221 of the first transport shuttle 22 and the upper surface of the second transport support portion 231 of the second transport shuttle 23. Has been done. Then, in the portion where the first transport path Tc1 and the transshipment transport path Td overlap, the side guide 378 also has the upper surface of the first transport support portion 221 of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport support portion 231 of the second transport shuttle 23. It is placed in the area lower than the upper surface of. As a result, when the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 pass through the transshipment start area As1, the first transport support portion 221 and the second transport support portion 231 do not interfere with the side guide 378.

By arranging in this way, for example, when the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 are separated from each other in front of and behind the article Pc in the transshipment start region As1, the article Pc becomes the first transport support portion 221 and the second. It falls from the transport support portion 231 to the upper surface of the bottom guide 377. By arranging the article Pc on the upper surface of the bottom surface guide 377, the outer surface of the transshipment transfer path Td is guided by the side surface guide 378. As a result, the article Pc is guided by the guide portion 374 and conveyed in the transshipment transfer path Td while being pushed by the pusher 371.

Further, when the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 continue to hold the article Pc in the transshipment start area As1, the bottom surface of the article Pc is supported by the first transport support portion 221 and the second transport support portion 231. Will be done. Therefore, the article Pc held by the first transport support portion 221 and the second transport support portion 231 does not come into contact with the side guide 378, and remains held by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 as a return path. Moved to Tb.

By configuring the bottom guide 377 and the side guide 378 of the guide portion 374 as described above, it is possible to selectively carry the article Pc into either the return path Tb or the transshipment transfer path Td. .. The configuration of the guide unit 374 is an example, and other configurations may be used.

<Accumulation of article Pc>
At the upstream end of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2, the article Pc is accumulated in the transport direction Tr. In the transport device A, four article Pc are accumulated. The number of articles Pc to be accumulated is not limited to four. The number of articles Pc to be accumulated depends on the number of boxes packed in the boxing section 500 arranged on the downstream side of the transport direction Tr of the stacking transport section 35, the shape of the box, and the like. In the transport device A according to the present embodiment, it is possible to change the number of articles Pc to be accumulated. For example, the number of accumulations may be 3, 4, or more.

The procedure for accumulating the article Pc in the second transport path Tc2 will be described. The first integrated shuttle 32 is stopped at a predetermined position Ps1. As a result, the first integrated engagement portion 321 of the first integrated shuttle 32 stops at a predetermined position Ps1 above the integrated transport unit 35. At this time, the second integrated shuttle 33 is made to stand by on the upstream side of the second transport path Tc2 in the transport direction at a position that does not interfere with the transport of the article Pc. The second integrated shuttle 33 may be stopped or may be moving at a low speed when waiting. The portion of the integrated rail 31 other than the portion along the second transport path Tc2 is a standby area in which the first integrated shuttle 32 and the second integrated shuttle 33 stand by.

When the first integrated engaging portion 321 stops on the integrated transport unit 35, the article Pc transported on the integrated transport unit 35 comes into contact with the article Pc. As a result, the movement of the article Pc is restricted by the first integrated engaging portion 321. That is, the article Pc is stopped. The first integrated engaging portion 321 may move the upper part of the integrated transport unit 35 at a speed slower than the transport speed of the article Pc by the integrated transport unit 35. Even in this way, the article Pc transported by the integrated transport unit 35 comes into contact with the first integrated engaging portion 321 moving at a slow speed. Thereby, the movement of the article Pc can be restricted by the first integrated engaging portion 321. The first integrated shuttle 32 may be continuously moved in a decelerated state, or may be stopped after reaching a predetermined position Ps1.

When the movement of the article Pc is restricted by the first integrated engaging portion 321, the bottom surface of the article Pc is urged by the integrated transport unit 35 in the transport direction Tr. Since the article Pc is guided in the transport direction Tr by the side guide 362, the movement of the article Pc in the direction intersecting the transport direction Tr is suppressed.

Then, the article Pc supplied from the transshipment section 37 comes into contact with the article Pc stopped by the first accumulation engaging portion 321 and is accumulated on the accumulation transfer section 35. Then, after a predetermined number (here, 4) of articles Pc are accumulated, the second accumulation shuttle 33 is moved from the standby area from the upstream side of the transport direction Tr. At this time, in the second integrated shuttle 33, the second integrated engaging portion 331 is located on the downstream side of the article Pc to be conveyed next to the article Pc on the most upstream side of the conveying direction Tr of the accumulated article Pc4. Drive.

Then, the second integrated engagement portion 331 is brought into contact with the upstream side of the transport direction Tr of the four stacked articles Pc in the transport direction Tr. As a result, the four accumulated articles Pc are held by the first accumulation shuttle 32 and the second accumulation shuttle 33 from the upstream side and the downstream side of the transport direction Tr.

The article Pc4 accumulated in the upstream portion of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2 is held in the second transport path Tc2 by holding the front end and the rear end of the transport direction Tr by the first accumulation shuttle 32 and the second integration shuttle 33. Is transported in the transport direction Tr. At this time, the accumulated articles Pc4 move from the upper part of the integrated transport unit 35 to the upper part of the bottom guide 361. That is, when the article Pc4 is moved to the downstream side of the transport direction Tr from the integrated transport unit 35, the side surface of the stacked article Pc4 is guided by the side surface guide 362, and the bottom surface is guided by the bottom surface guide 361.

<Boxing part 500>
As shown in FIG. 1, a boxing section 500 for packing articles Pc in a storage box Bx is arranged on the downstream side of the transport direction Tr from the integrated transport section 35 of the second transport path Tc2. The boxing section 500 packs the article Pc in a storage box Bx formed by bending a sheet Sh such as corrugated cardboard, and carries it out.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the boxing section 500, the four collected articles Pc are sequentially housed in a folded sheet Sh as a lump. The boxing section 500 includes a box transport section 51, a first box packing section 52, a second box packing section 53, a boxing section 54, and an inspection section 55.

<Box transport unit 51>
The box transport unit 51 includes a box transport rail 511, a plurality of box transport shuttles 512, a box transport linear motor mechanism 513 (see FIG. 2), and a guide rail 514. The box transport rail 511 is formed in a loop shape by connecting straight rails arranged in parallel vertically and curved rails connecting both ends of the straight rails. The straight rail of the box transport rail 511 extends along the box transport direction Trb. The box transport rail 511 has the same configuration as the transport rail 21. Therefore, the detailed configuration of the box transport rail 511 will be omitted.

The guide rail 514 is arranged along a straight rail arranged above the box transport rail 511. The guide rails 514 form a pair with the box transport rail 511 interposed therebetween. In the box transport section 51, the upper surface of the guide rail 514 supports the seat Sh and guides the movement of the seat Sh in the box transport direction Trb.

<Box transport shuttle 512>
The box transport shuttle 512 is arranged on the box transport rail 511 and can move along the box transport rail 511. The box transport shuttle 512 has a structure similar to that of the first integrated shuttle 32. The box transport shuttle 512 has an arm portion protruding upward. By adjusting the interval of the box transport shuttle 512, the seat Sh is bent along the arm portion. Then, the two box transport shuttles 512 hold both ends of the box transport direction Trb of the sheet Sh arranged and bent side by side in the box transport direction Trb. The two box transport shuttles 512 move in the box transport direction Trb to transport the bent sheet Sh.

<Box transfer linear motor mechanism 513>
The box transfer linear motor mechanism 513 can independently drive each box transfer shuttle 512. The box transfer linear motor mechanism 513 has the same configuration as the transfer linear motor mechanism 24. That is, the box transfer linear motor mechanism 513 forms a linear motor with a coil (not shown) arranged on the box transfer rail 511 and a magnet (not shown) arranged on the box transfer shuttle 512.

Further, the box transport linear motor mechanism 513 has a linear driver 515 (see FIG. 2). The linear driver 515 supplies an appropriate current to each coil based on the instruction from the control unit 600. By supplying an electric current to the coil, a linear motor is formed by the coil and the magnet, and the box transfer shuttle 512 moves along the box transfer rail 511.

<1st boxing part 52, 2nd boxing part 53, sealing part 54, inspection part 55>
The first boxing section 52, the second packing section 53, the sealing section 54, and the inspection section 55 are arranged in this order along the second transport path Tc2. The four articles Pc accumulated in the second transport path Tc2 are transported to the first boxing section 52 or the second boxing section 53. The first boxing portion 52 and the second boxing portion 53 have substantially the same configuration except that the locations are different.

The accumulated articles Pc4 are conveyed to the first packing section 52 or the second packing section 53 while being held by the first stacking shuttle 32 and the second stacking shuttle 33. The transport of the accumulated articles Pc4 is determined by the boxing operation in the first boxing section 52 and the second boxing section 53.

For example, in the case of packing the articles Pc4 simultaneously or substantially simultaneously in both the first packing section 52 and the second packing section 53 in the boxing operation, the second packing section 53 on the downstream side of the transport direction Tr. The article Pc4 accumulated in the box is conveyed, and then the article Pc is conveyed to the first boxing portion 52. When the first boxing section 52 and the second boxing section 53 alternately pack the boxes, the articles Pc4 accumulated in the boxing section where the boxing is performed are conveyed. Further, when the accumulated number of the articles Pc packed in the first boxing section 52 and the accumulated number of the articles Pc packed in the second boxing section 53 are different, the respective accumulated numbers and the accumulated articles Pc4 are dealt with. Transport to the boxing section. In the boxing section 500 of the present embodiment, the articles Pc4 having the same number of stacks are simultaneously boxed in both the first boxing section 52 and the second boxing section 53.

In the first boxing portion 52 and the second boxing portion 53, for example, a pushing device having an articulated arm (both not shown) is arranged. The pushing device moves the side surface of all the integrated articles Pc4 facing the first linear integration rail 311 away from the first linear integration rail 311 and accommodates them in the upper part of the bent sheet Sh. In the first boxing section 52 and the second boxing section 53, after a predetermined number of accumulated articles Pc4 are housed in the bent sheet Sh, the box transport shuttle 512 by the box transport linear motor mechanism 513 By moving, it is sent to the sealing section 54.

In the first boxing section 52 and the second boxing section 53, the sheet Sh containing a predetermined number of articles Pc is sent to the sealing section 54. For example, a sealing device (all not shown) having an articulated arm robot having an articulated arm is arranged in the sealing unit 54. The sealing device bends the unfolded portion of the sheet Sh containing the accumulated article Pc4, and fixes the bent portion by a fixing method such as adhesive. As a result, a storage box Bx in which a predetermined number of articles Pc are stored and sealed is formed. Adhesive is mentioned as a method for fixing the sheet Sh, but the method is not limited to this, and for example, a method using an adhesive tape, a method using a stapler, etc., the storage box Bx does not easily collapse during transportation, and the internal article Pc can be used. A fixing method that can obtain rigidity to the extent that it can be protected can be widely adopted.

After that, the storage box Bx is sent to the inspection unit 55 further downstream of the box transport direction Trb by the movement of the box transport shuttle 512 by the box transport linear motor mechanism 513. The inspection unit 55 has an appearance information acquisition unit 551 (see FIG. 2) that acquires information on the appearance of the storage box Bx. Examples of the appearance information acquisition unit 551 include, but are not limited to, a configuration including an image pickup element such as a camera.

The appearance information acquisition unit 551 is connected to the control unit 600 and sends the appearance information of the storage box Bx to the control unit 600. The appearance information may include, but is not limited to, a captured image. The control unit 600 confirms whether or not the storage box Bx has sufficient rigidity as described above based on the appearance information, and if it is determined that the storage box Bx has sufficient rigidity, the control unit 600 conveys (ships) to the outside and the rigidity becomes high. If it is judged to be insufficient, it will be removed as a defective product. For example, when the captured image is included as the appearance information, the control unit 600 may determine the adhesive state of the storage box Bx by image processing. Further, the determination may be made by a method other than this.

The inspection unit 55 of the boxing unit 500 of the present embodiment determines whether or not the rigidity of the storage box Bx satisfies a predetermined standard, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, printing the appearance of the storage box Bx, detecting a sticker attached to the appearance, and based on the design of the appearance of the storage box Bx, or the display state of the required display content (presence / absence of display, It may be possible to discriminate between a non-defective product and a defective product based on the display position, etc.).

<Secondary transport unit 700>
FIG. 15 is a plan view showing the first transport unit 200 and the sub transport unit 700. FIG. 16 is a plan view showing a state in which the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23, and the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 simultaneously hold the article Pc. FIG. 17 is a rear view of the article Pc shown in FIG. FIG. 18 is a plan view showing a state after the article Pc has moved to the sub-transport unit 700. In the state shown in FIG. 15, the article Pc is held by the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 15 to 18, etc., the sub-transport unit 700 is arranged close to the first transport unit 200. The sub-transport unit 700 includes a sub-transport rail 71, a first sub-transfer shuttle 72, a second sub-transfer shuttle 73, and a sub-transfer linear motor mechanism 74 (see FIG. 2).

The sub-conveyor rail 71 and the sub-conveyor linear motor mechanism 74 have substantially the same configuration as the transfer rail 21 and the integrated linear motor mechanism 34 of the first transfer unit 200. Therefore, each part of the integrated rail 31 and the integrated linear motor mechanism 34 will be compared with the corresponding parts of the transfer rail 21 and the transfer linear motor mechanism 24, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

<Secondary transport rail 71>
The sub-conveyor rail 71 corresponds to the first straight transport rail 211, the second straight transport rail 212, the first curved transport rail 213, and the second curved transport rail 214, respectively, and the first straight sub-convey rail 711 and the second straight line. It has an auxiliary transfer rail 712, a first curved auxiliary transfer rail 713, and a second curved auxiliary transfer rail 714. The sub-conveyor rail 71 is connected to the first straight sub-conveyor rail 711, the first curved sub-conveyed rail 713, the second straight sub-conveyed rail 712, and the second curved sub-conveyed rail 714 in a counterclockwise order in plan view. It is formed in a loop shape. The portion of the sub-transport rail 71 that is close to the outside is the sub-transport path Tf.

As shown in FIG. 17, the sub-conveyor rail 71 has a main rail portion 715, a grooved rail portion 716, and a flat rail portion 717 corresponding to each of the main rail portion 215, the grooved rail portion 216, and the flat rail portion 217. .. A gap 718 is formed between the main rail portion 715 and the grooved rail portion 716. The gap 718 corresponds to the gap 718. Further, a groove portion 719 is formed on the outer surface of the grooved rail portion 716. The groove portion 719 corresponds to the groove portion 719.

<Secondary transfer linear motor mechanism 74>
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 17, the subconveying linear motor mechanism 74 has a coil 741, a magnet 742 and a linear driver 743 that correspond to a coil 241 and a magnet 242 and a linear driver 243. The linear driver 743 is connected to the control unit 600 (see FIG. 2) and supplies an appropriate current to each coil 741 based on the instruction from the control unit 600. The coil 741 is arranged in the main rail portion 715 of the integrated rail 31. The magnet 742 is arranged on the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73.

<First sub-transport shuttle 72 and second sub-transport shuttle 73>
As shown in FIGS. 15 to 18, the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 are arranged on the outer surface of the sub-transport rail 71 and can move along the sub-transport rail 71. The first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 have the same configuration as the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23. Regarding the same parts of the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 as the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23, only correspondence is shown, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 17, the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 include a main body portion 720, an upper roller 723, a lower roller 724, and a convex portion 729 having a common configuration. The main body 720 corresponds to the main body 220 of the first transport shuttle 22. The upper roller 723 and the lower roller 724 correspond to the upper roller 223 and the lower roller 224 of the first transfer shuttle 22. The convex portion 729 corresponds to the convex portion 229.

The first sub-transport shuttle 72 includes a first sub-transport support portion 721 corresponding to the first transport support portion 221 of the first transport shuttle 22, and two first sub-transport sections corresponding to the first transport engaging portion 222. It has a joint 722. The first sub-transport support portion 721 has a corner portion 725 corresponding to the corner portion 225 of the first transport support portion 221.

The two first sub-transport engagement portions 722 include an arm main body portion 726, a claw portion 727, and a presser portion 728 corresponding to the arm main body portion 226, the claw portion 227, and the presser portion 228 of the first transfer engagement portion 222. Have.

The second sub-transport shuttle 73 includes a second sub-transport support portion 731 corresponding to the second transport support portion 231 of the second transport shuttle 23, and two second sub-transport sections corresponding to the second transport engaging portion 232. It has a joint 732. The second sub-transport support portion 731 has a corner portion 735 corresponding to the corner portion 235 of the second transport support portion 231.

The two second sub-transport engagement portions 732 include an arm main body portion 736, a claw portion 737, and a presser portion 738 corresponding to the arm main body portion 236, the claw portion 237, and the presser portion 238 of the second transfer engagement portion 232. Have.

As shown in FIG. 15 and the like, in the sub-conveying unit 700, the first straight sub-conveying rail 711 faces the first straight-line transport rail 211 with the first transport path Tc1 of the first transport unit 200 interposed therebetween, and is parallel to each other. Be placed. The upstream side of the transport direction Tr of the first straight transport rail 211 is the transport straight portion 210, and the portion of the first straight sub-convey rail 711 facing the transport straight portion 210 is the sub-transport straight portion 710.

In the transport device A of the present embodiment, the sub-transport unit 700 is assumed to be arranged close to the first transport path Tc1 of the first transport unit 200, but the present invention is not limited to this. It may be close to the curved portion. In this case, the one that is curved along the curved rail of the first transport portion 200 can be mentioned.

As shown in FIGS. 16 to 18, the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 are the corner portions 725 of the first sub-transport support portion 721 and the corner portions 735 of the second sub-transport support portion 731. Supports the bottom surface of the article Pc. Then, the pressing portion 728 engages with the front end portion of the surface of the article Pc on the main body portion 720 side in the transport direction, and the claw portion 727 engages with the front end portion of the opposite surface in the transport direction. Further, the arm main body portion 736 comes into contact with the front surface in the transport direction. As a result, the first sub-transport engaging portion 722 of the first sub-transport shuttle 72 engages with the front portion of the article Pc in the transport direction.

Similarly, the holding portion 738 engages with the front end of the surface of the article Pc on the main body 720 side in the transport direction, and the claw portion 737 engages with the rear end of the opposite surface in the transport direction. .. Further, the arm main body portion 736 comes into contact with the rear surface in the transport direction. As a result, the second sub-transport engaging portion 732 of the second sub-transport shuttle 73 engages with the front portion of the article Pc in the transport direction.

That is, the article Pc is held in the front-rear direction in the transport direction while being supported by the bottom surface by the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73. As described above, by using the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73, even a soft and fragile article Pc such as a paper container containing a liquid inside can be reliably and reliably used. The front part and the rear part of the transport direction Tr of the article Pc can be safely held.

<Acquisition of location information of article Pc>
For example, in the first transport unit 200, the article Pc is processed by a processing unit such as a straw sticking unit 25 and a defective product exclusion unit 26 when it is in the first transport path Tc1. Therefore, the control unit 600 needs to acquire the accurate position of the article Pc in the first transport path Tc1.

The control unit 600 acquires the positions of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 from the exciting coil information Im acquired from the linear driver 243 of the transfer linear motor mechanism 24. Then, the position of the article Pc is acquired from the positions of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23. The details of the procedure for the control unit 600 to acquire the position of the article Pc will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing a procedure for acquiring the position information of the article Pc by the control unit 600.

The control unit 600 acquires the exciting coil information Im from the linear driver 243 (step S101). The exciting coil information Im includes information on the electric power (voltage, current) supplied to the coil 241 and the position of the coil 241 on the transport rail 21.

As shown in FIG. 19, the control unit 600 confirms whether or not the coil 241 excited from the acquired exciting coil information Im is in the main transport region 21 m (step S102). When the excited coil 241 is not in the main transport area 21 m (No in step S102), the current excited coil information is discarded (step S109), and acquisition of another excited coil information Im is restarted (step). Return to S101). If it is determined that the excited coil 241 is in the main transfer region 21m (Yes in step S102), the control unit 600 will use the first transfer shuttle 22 and the first transfer shuttle 22 from the relative position of the coil 241 currently being excited. It is confirmed whether or not the second transport shuttle 23 holds the article Pc (step S103).

When the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 hold the article Pc, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 are at regular intervals. Taking advantage of this, in the control unit 600, for example, when the distance of the excited coil 241 is within a certain range, the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 hold the article Pc. Judge. The determination as to whether or not the article Pc is held is not limited to this. For example, when the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 are configured to always receive the article Pc from the transfer device 400, the step of presence / absence of the article (step S103) may be omitted.

When it is determined that the article Pc is not held (No in step S103), the control unit 600 discards the acquired exciting coil information Im (step S109) and acquires another exciting coil information Im (step S109). Return to step S101).

When it is determined that the article Pc is held (Yes in step S103), the control unit 600 acquires the position of the article Pc in the first transport path Tc1 from the exciting coil information Im (step S104). Then, the control unit 600 controls the operation of the straw sticking unit 25 and the defective product exclusion unit 26 so that the article Pc is appropriately processed (step S105). In this way, the control unit 600 can accurately acquire the position of the article Pc and control the processing unit to appropriately process the article Pc.

Further, depending on the processing of the processing unit, it may be necessary to reduce the transport speed of the article Pc. If the transport speed of the article Pc is reduced, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 may be crowded in the first transport path Tc1. Therefore, the control unit 600 controls the transport device A so as to adjust the number of articles Pc in the first transport path Tc1. That is, the control unit 600 acquires the number of articles Pc in the first transport path Tc1 from the positions of the plurality of articles Pc (step S106). Then, the control unit 600 confirms whether or not the number Nb of the articles Pc in the first transport path Tc1 is larger than the predetermined number Nth (step S107).

When the number Nb is less than the number Nth (No in step S107), the control unit 600 further determines that the article Pc may be put in the first transport path Tc1, and continues the current operation while continuing the current operation. Another exciting coil information Im is acquired (returning to step S101). When the number Nb is larger than the number Nth (Yes in step S107), the control unit 600 controls the nip roller 12 to reduce the number of articles Pc carried into the first transport unit 200 (step S108). .. After that, the current exciting coil information Im is discarded (step S109), and the exciting coil information Im is acquired (returning to step S101).

As described above, by accurately acquiring the position of the article Pc from the exciting coil information Im, which is the information of the coil 241 excited by the control unit 600, the accurate number of articles Pc within a predetermined range is acquired. can. Then, by acquiring an accurate number of articles Pc within a predetermined range, it is possible to suppress an excessive supply of articles Pc.

In the above example, the exciting coil information Im includes the electric power (voltage, current) supplied to the coil 241 and the position information of the coil 241 on the transport rail 21, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if the method of supplying electric power differs between the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23, the supplied current drives the first transport shuttle 22 or the second transport shuttle 23. It may contain the information of the electric current. In addition, information for acquiring the position of the article Pc other than these may be included.

As described above, since the control unit 600 can accurately acquire the exciting coil information Im or the position of the article Pc, it is necessary to separately prepare a detection unit such as an optical sensor in order to confirm the position of the article Pc. There is no. Therefore, the configuration of the transport device A can be simplified.

In the above description, the control unit 600 detects the position of the article Pc moving in the first transfer path Tc1 of the first transfer unit 200 from the exciting coil information Im, but is not limited to this. In addition to this, the position and number of articles Pc in the second transport path Tc2 may be detected based on the exciting coil information Im from the linear driver 343 arranged in the second transport unit 300. In the second transport path Tc2, four articles are accumulated and transported as the accumulated articles Pc4. Therefore, the control unit 600 acquires the positions of the four integrated articles Pc4 from the exciting coil information Im.

Further, the position and the number of articles Pc in the sub-transport path Tf may be detected based on the exciting coil information Im from the linear driver 743 arranged in the sub-transport unit 700.

<About the operation of the sub-transport unit 700>
As shown in FIG. 17, the first sub-transport engaging portion 722 of the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the first transport engaging portion 222 of the first transport shuttle 22 are displaced in the vertical direction. Further, the second sub-transport engaging portion 732 of the second sub-transport shuttle 73 and the second transport engaging portion 232 of the second transport shuttle 23 are displaced in the vertical direction.

Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 15 to 18, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 are located in the transport straight line portion 210, and the first sub transport shuttle 72 and the second sub transport shuttle 73 are located in the sub transport straight section portion 710. When the article Pc is held by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23, the article Pc can be simultaneously held by the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73.

For example, as shown in FIG. 15, when the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 holding the article Pc are moving along the transport straight line portion 210, they move along the sub-transport straight line portion 710. The first sub-transport shuttle 72 is brought closer to the article Pc from the downstream side of the transport direction Tr. Further, the second sub-transport shuttle 73 is brought closer to the article Pc from the upstream side of the transport direction Tr. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 simultaneously hold the article Pc held by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23. ..

After that, as shown in FIG. 18, the first transport shuttle 22 is moved to the downstream side of the transport direction Tr so as to be away from the article Pc. Further, the second transport shuttle 23 is moved to the upstream side of the transport direction Tr so as to be away from the article Pc. By doing so, the article Pc can be delivered from the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 to the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73.

On the contrary, when the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 holding the article Pc are moving along the sub-transport straight line portion 710, the first sub-transport straight section 210 is arranged. The transport shuttle 22 is brought closer to the article Pc from the downstream side of the transport direction Tr. Further, the second transport shuttle 23 is brought close to the article Pc from the upstream side of the transport direction Tr, and the article Pc is held by the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23.

After that, the first sub-transport shuttle 72 is moved to the downstream side of the transport direction Tr so as to be away from the article Pc. Further, the second sub-transport shuttle 73 is moved to the upstream side of the transport direction Tr so as to be away from the article Pc. By doing so, the article Pc can be delivered from the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 to the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23.

It is preferable that the article Pc is transported at a constant or substantially constant speed while being transported along the first transport path Tc1. Therefore, when approaching the article Pc from the downstream side of the transport direction Tr, a method of decelerating the first transport shuttle 22 or the first sub-transport shuttle 72 can be mentioned. Further, in the case of moving the article Pc away from the downstream side of the transport direction Tr, a method of accelerating the first transport shuttle 22 or the first sub-transport shuttle 72 can be mentioned.

Further, when approaching the article Pc from the upstream side of the transport direction Tr, a method of accelerating the second transport shuttle 23 or the second sub-transport shuttle 73 can be mentioned. Further, in the case of moving the article Pc away from the upstream side of the transport direction Tr, a method of decelerating the second transport shuttle 23 or the second sub-transport shuttle 73 can be mentioned.

By providing the sub-transporting unit 700 having such a configuration, the article Pc can be transferred to the sub-transporting unit without stopping the article Pc conveyed in the first conveying section 200 and further suppressing the deceleration of the article Pc. Can be sent to 700. Further, it is possible to send the article Pc to the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 without stopping the article Pc conveyed in the first transfer unit 200.

For example, when a sampling survey is randomly performed on the article Pc transported in the first transport section 200, the article Pc being transported is transferred to the sub-transport section without slowing down or stopping the article Pc. It can be sent to 700 and extracted. Therefore, it is possible to carry out a sampling survey of the article Pc at any time during the period in which the article Pc is being transported.

Further, the boxing unit 500 has an inspection unit 55. The inspection unit 55 determines that the box of the storage box Bx is defective. For example, when the inspection unit 55 determines that the storage box Bx is defective, the storage box Bx is discharged to the outside from the transport path. Even if the storage box Bx is defective, the stored article Pc may not be defective.

In such a case, the storage box Bx, which is regarded as a defective product, is disassembled, and the appropriate article Pc stored inside is taken out. Then, the article Pc taken out from the storage box Bx can be returned to the first transport unit 200 by using the sub-transport unit 700.

For example, the article Pc taken out from the storage box Bx is delivered to the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 that move on the second straight sub-transport rail 712 of the sub-transport unit 700. Although not shown, a device for delivering the article Pc to the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 may be provided.

The article Pc is transported in the sub-transport path Tf of the sub-transport unit 700 while being held by the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73. Then, when the first sub-transport shuttle 72 and the second sub-transport shuttle 73 holding the article Pc reach the sub-transport straight section 710 of the first straight sub-transport rail 711, the article Pc held is described above. By the method, the transport rail 21 of the first transport unit 200 is delivered to the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 that move. The control unit 600 adjusts the carry-in unit 100, the transfer device 400, and the transfer linear motor mechanism 24 to transfer the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 that do not hold the article Pc at a fixed timing. Send it to unit 210.

By doing so, it is not necessary to stop the movement of the article Pc in the first transport unit 200. As a result, it is possible to smoothly and easily return the defective article Pc taken out from the disassembled storage box Bx to the transport device A while suppressing unnecessary stop time of the transport device A.

A straw Th is attached to the boxed article Pc. On the other hand, when performing a sampling inspection, the article Pc before the straw Th is attached is sent to the sub-transport unit 700.

As described above, the control unit 600 acquires the position of the article Pc from the exciting coil information. The position of the article Pc also acquires the position of the article Pc in the sub-transport path Tf. Therefore, it is possible to obtain information on whether or not the straw Th is attached to the article Pc returning from the sub-transport path Tf to the first transport path Tc1 depending on the transport state of the article Pc until it is sent to the sub-transport unit 700.

As a result, the control unit 600 controls the straw sticking unit 25 so as not to operate if the straw Th is attached when the article Pc is returned from the sub-transport path Tf to the first transfer path Tc1. On the contrary, when the article Pc does not have the straw Th, the straw sticking portion 25 is controlled to operate. That is, since the control unit 600 accurately recognizes the position of the article Pc, it is possible to suppress the problem that the straw Th is excessively attached.

<Return control>
As shown in FIG. 1 and the like, the straw sticking unit 25 executes a process of attaching the straw Th to the article Pc transported along the first transport path Tc1. On the other hand, there may be a problem of the straw sticking portion 25 such that the spare of the straw Th is exhausted or the straw Th is clogged. In such a case, it is necessary to inspect the straw sticking portion 25 after urgently stopping the processing by the processing unit.

Further, when the number of defective products in the defective product exclusion unit 26 exceeds a certain number in a certain period, it is determined that a defect has occurred upstream of the defective product exclusion unit 26 in the transport direction Tr, and each processing unit has a defect. It is necessary to stop the processing urgently and inspect each processing unit. Further, even in the case of a configuration including a processing unit other than these, the processing by the processing unit may be stopped urgently.

In this way, when the processing by the processing unit is stopped, it is preferable to stop the transportation of the article Pc in the transport device A (hereinafter referred to as an emergency stop). However, the device on the upstream side of the transport device A (here, the filling device) may suppress problems such as clogging of the article Pc inside. Therefore, even if it is desired to stop the transport device A in an emergency, it is difficult to stop the filling device immediately, and a certain number of articles Pc may be supplied to the transport device A. That is, even when the transport device A is urgently stopped, a certain number of articles Pc may be supplied to the carry-in unit 100.

Then, in order to prevent the article Pc from overflowing or being clogged from the carry-in section 100, a certain number of article Pc are brought into the first transport section 200 from the carry-in section 100 when the transport device A is urgently stopped.

Here, the operation at the time of an emergency stop will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing an example of return control. As shown in FIG. 20, the control unit 600 waits until it becomes necessary to make an emergency stop (repeats until Yes in step S201). The case where an emergency stop is required is, for example, a case where a problem related to the processing unit as described above occurs.

When an emergency stop is required (Yes in step S201), the control unit 600 stops the operation of the transshipment unit 37 (step S202). Then, the control unit 600 continues the operation of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 (step S203). That is, the control unit 600 performs return control at the time of an emergency stop. At this time, the pusher 371 of the transshipment unit 37 is arranged at a position retracted from the first transport path Tc1.

Then, the control unit 600 confirms whether the carry-in unit 100 can be stopped (step S204). The control unit 600 confirms whether or not a certain period of time has passed since the emergency stop as a confirmation of whether or not the carry-in unit 100 can be stopped. It should be noted that confirmation as to whether or not the carry-in unit 100 can be stopped may be performed based on the number of articles Pc carried into the carry-in unit 100 after the emergency stop is executed.

The control unit 600 continues the operation of the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 until the carry-in unit 100 can be stopped (during No in step S204). (Step S203). Then, when the carry-in unit 100 can be stopped (Yes in step S204), the control unit 600 stops the carry-in unit 100 (step S205), and the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 22 and the second until a certain period of time elapses. The operation of the transport shuttle 23 is continued (step S206).

As a result, the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 holding the article Pc move to the return path Tb while holding the article Pc without delivering the article Pc to the transshipment unit 37. That is, the control unit 600 moves the article Pc that has not been processed by the processing unit into the return path Tb while being held by the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23.

The control unit 600 controls the transfer linear motor mechanism 24 to stop the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 (step S207). As described above, the control unit 600 performs return control for operating the transfer linear motor mechanism 24 so as to move the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 holding the article Pc to the return region 21n.

When the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 holding the article Pc move to the return region 21n, the control unit 600 causes the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 to stop in the return region 21n. , Controls the transport linear motor mechanism 24.

In this way, the control unit 600 performs return control at the time of an emergency stop so that the article Pc is received from the filling device which is the upper device of the transport device A and the article Pc does not remain in the first transport path Tc1. can. As a result, at the time of an emergency stop, the maintenance of the straw sticking section 25, which is a processing section arranged close to the first transport path Tc1, and the first transport path Tc1 based on the information from the defective product exclusion section 26, which is the processing section. The article Pc does not get in the way when performing maintenance or the like of the transport device A including the above.

Then, when the emergency stop is released, the control unit 600 drives the transfer linear motor mechanism 24 to move the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 in the return region 21n in the transfer direction Tr. As a result, the first transfer shuttle 22 and the second transfer shuttle 23 holding the article Pc move to the main transfer area 21 m. As a result, the article Pc that has been retracted to the return path Tb due to the emergency stop is sent to the first transport path Tc1 again by restarting the operations of the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23, and is sent to the first transport route Tc1. It is conveyed in the route Tc1.

It is preferable that the control unit 600 moves the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 to the downstream side of the transport direction Tr as much as possible and stops after a certain number of articles Pc are carried in from the carry-in unit 100. By doing so, it is possible to quickly move the article Pc in the return route Tb to the first transport route Tc1 after the emergency stop is released.

In this way, the return path Tb required for returning the first transport shuttle 22 and the second transport shuttle 23 of the first transport unit 200 is used as an evacuation area for retracting the article Pc at the time of an emergency stop. That is, it is not necessary to separately provide an area for retracting the article Pc in the transport path. Therefore, the transport path of the article Pc in the transport device A can be shortened, the installation area of the transport device A can be reduced, or the degree of freedom in the layout of the transport device A can be increased.

When the first transport unit 200 has the sub transport unit 700 as in the transport device A according to the present embodiment, at least a part of the article Pc is used as the sub transport unit when the emergency stop as described above is performed. You may send it to 700. By doing so, it is possible to secure an area for retracting the article Pc, and it is possible to retract the article Pc more reliably.

In addition, a predetermined number or more of articles Pc may be transported in the first transport path Tc1 due to a delay in the processing of the processing unit or the like. In such a case, the processing of the article Pc may be delayed, and the transportation may be delayed. In such a case, the control unit 600 may perform return control so as to send a number of articles Pc exceeding a predetermined number to the return path Tb.

Further, in the present embodiment, the article Pc is moved to the return path Tb based on the operation of the straw sticking section 25 and the defective product removing section 26, which are the processing sections arranged in the first transport section 200. However, it is not limited to this. For example, due to a defect in the integrated device, the boxing section, etc. arranged on the upstream side of the transport direction Tr of the second transport path Tc2 of the second transport section 300 arranged after the first transport section 200, the first transport section It may not be possible to transfer the article Pc from 200 to the second transport unit 300. Even in such a case, the first transport unit 200 may perform return control for returning the article Pc to the return path Tb. This makes it possible to stop the collection and boxing process and check the status.

The transport device A according to the present embodiment has two transport units, a first transport unit 200 and a second transport unit 300, and has described a configuration in which the article Pc moves between the two transport units. Not limited to. A larger number of transport units may be provided depending on the number of processing units that process the article Pc. In this case, each transport unit may be provided with a processing unit. With this configuration, when a defect occurs in the processing unit, the control unit 600 can cope with it by partially performing return control in the transport unit provided with the processing unit in which the defect has occurred. It will be possible. As a result, when a problem occurs in the processing unit, the transfer shuttle holding the article is moved to the return area of each transfer unit, so that it is possible to shorten the time until returning to normal operation.

In the present embodiment, when the return control is performed, the pusher 371 of the transshipment unit 37 is arranged at a position retracted from the first transport path Tc1, but the present invention is not limited to this. The configuration may be such that the entire transshipment unit 37 is retracted. A configuration that prevents the first transport path Tc1 from interfering with the moving article Pc can be widely adopted.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to this content. Further, the embodiments of the present invention can be modified in various ways as long as they do not deviate from the gist of the invention.

100 Carry-in part 11 Carry-in conveyor 111 Conveyor motor 12 Nip roller 121 Roller motor 13 Pusher 200 1st transport part 21 Transport rail 210 Transport straight section 211 1st straight transport rail 212 2nd straight transport rail 213 1st curve Transport rail 214 2nd curve Transport rail 215 Main rail section 216 Grooved rail section 217 Flat rail section 218 Gap 219 Groove section 21m Main transport area 21n Return area 22 1st transport shuttle 220 Main body section 221 1st transport support section 222 1st transport engagement section 223 Upper roller 224 Lower roller 225 Square part 226 Arm body part 227 Claw part 228 Pressing part 229 Convex part 23 Second transport shuttle 220 Main body part 231 Second transport support part 232 Second transport engaging part 235 Square part 236 Arm body part 237 Claw part 238 Presser part 24 Conveying linear motor mechanism 241 Coil 242 Magnet 243 Linear driver 25 Straw sticking part 26 Defective product exclusion part 261 Elimination conveyor 300 2nd transport part 31 Integrated rail 311 1st straight integrated rail 312 2nd straight integrated rail 313 1st Curved integrated rail 314 2nd curved integrated rail 315 Main rail part 316 Grooved rail part 317 Flat rail part 318 Gap 319 Groove part 32 1st integrated shuttle 320 Main body part 321 1st integrated engaging part 323 Upper roller 324 Lower roller 325 2nd Integrated contact surface 329 Convex part 33 2nd integrated shuttle 320 Main body part 331 2nd integrated contact surface 335 1st integrated contact surface 34 Integrated linear motor mechanism 341 Coil 342 Magnet 343 Linear driver 35 Integrated transport unit 36 Guide part 361 Bottom guide 362 Side guide 37 Transshipment part 371 Pusher 372 Holding member 373 Drive motor 374 Guide part 375 First push part 376 Second push part 377 Bottom guide 378 Side guide 400 Transfer device 41 Pusher 411 First push part 412 Second push part 413 Side Holding part 42 Holding member 420 Mounting part 421 Internal tooth gear 43 Moving mechanism 431 Drive motor 432 Drive shaft 433 Pinion gear 44 Guide part 441 Bottom surface Guide 442 Side Guide 45 Lid 400a Transfer Device 41a Pusher 500 Box Packing 51 Box Transport 511 Box Transport Rail 512 Box Transport Shuttle 513 Box Transport Linear Motor Mechanism 514 Guide Rail 515 Linear Driver 52 1st Box Pack 53 2nd Box Packing part 54 Boxing part 55 Inspection part 551 Appearance information acquisition part 600 Control part 601 Processing circuit 602 Storage circuit 700 Sub-conveying part 71 Sub-conveying rail 710 Sub-conveying straight part 711 First straight sub-conveying rail 712 Second straight sub-conveying rail 713 1st curve auxiliary transfer rail 714 2nd curve auxiliary transfer rail 715 Main rail part 716 Grooved rail part 717 Flat rail part 718 Gap 719 Groove part 72 1st auxiliary transfer shuttle 720 Main body part 721 1st auxiliary transfer support part 722 1st Sub-transport engagement part 723 Upper roller 724 Lower roller 725 Square part 726 Arm body part 727 Claw part 728 Holding part 729 Convex part 73 Second sub-transport shuttle 731 Second sub-transport support part 732 Second sub-transport engagement part 735 Square Part 736 Arm body part 737 Claw part 738 Pressing part 74 Sub-conveying linear motor mechanism 741 Coil 742 Magnet 743 Linear driver A Conveying device Bx Storage box C1 Central axis C2 Central axis Im Excitation coil information Nb Number Nth Number Pc Route Ta2 Movement route Tb Return route Tc1 First transport route Tc2 Second transport route Td Transport route Tf Sub transport route Th Straw Tr Transport direction Trb Box transport direction

Claims (8)

A transfer device that moves an article along an arc-shaped transfer path to transfer the article.
A plurality of pushers, some of which are movably arranged along a circumferential movement path that overlaps the transfer path and push the article along the transfer path.
A plurality of holding members that independently hold the plurality of pushers and rotate around the central axis of the arcuate movement path, and a plurality of holding members.
A moving mechanism that moves the plurality of holding members independently, and
It has a guide portion that supports at least a portion of the article on the radial outer side of the arcuate transfer path while the article moves along the transfer path.
The moving mechanism is a transfer device that moves a plurality of the holding members so that the articles are delivered at regular intervals. The transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the pusher comes into contact with at least a part of the rear surface in the transport direction of the article when moving along the transfer path. The transfer device according to claim 2, wherein the pusher contacts at least a part of a radial inner surface of the transfer path of the article. The transfer device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the guide portion is integrally formed with the pusher. The transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the guide portion is a member separate from the pusher and is arranged on the radial outside of the transfer path and has a strip shape extending along the transfer path. The plurality of holding members are annular members arranged side by side in a direction along the central axis, and have a mounting portion arranged on an outer peripheral surface to which the pusher is mounted.
The transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein each pusher attached to the attachment portion has the same position in the central axis direction. Internal gears are formed on the inner surfaces of the plurality of holding members.
The movement mechanism is
A plurality of pinion gears that mesh with the internal gears of each holding member, and
The transfer device according to claim 6, further comprising a plurality of motors for rotating each of the plurality of pinion gears. The transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
A transport rail arranged along a transport path for goods to be received from the transfer device, and a transport rail.
A first transport shuttle and a second transport shuttle movably arranged on the transport rail along the transport path,
It has a transfer linear motor mechanism capable of independently driving the first transfer shuttle and the second transfer shuttle, respectively.
The first transport shuttle has a first transport engaging portion that engages with the front side in the transport direction of the article.
The second transport shuttle has a second transport engaging portion that engages with the rear side in the transport direction of the article.
The first transport engaging portion and the second transport engaging portion are transport devices for articles that engage with a portion different from the pusher and the guide portion in the vertical direction of the article.

Images