JP4576105B2 - Labeling device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a label affixing device that adsorbs a label conveyed in a state temporarily attached to a mount by an adsorbing plate and affixes it to an article, and more particularly to a label affixing device that affixes a label with an RFID tag attached thereto.

  In recent years, as shown in FIG. 9, a RFID (Radio Fruquency IDntification) tag T, which is equipped with a communication antenna Tb connected to a memory chip Ta that stores various information, is affixed to various articles. A technique that is attached to the label L and performs wireless non-contact automatic identification using the RFID tag T has become widespread. In the figure, a symbol D is a mount on which a label L is temporarily attached.

  When such a label L with an RFID tag T attached thereto is attached to an article, it is easy to use a known label attaching device (not shown) provided with a suction plate. In this known label sticking device, the label is transported in a temporarily attached state on the mount, and the label temporarily attached to the mount by the suction plate is sucked and separated at a predetermined sucking position, and the article at the predetermined sticking position. Affix to

  By the way, in this label affixing device, the memory chip Ta of the RFID tag T is damaged in the process of transporting the label L or the like, resulting in failure, the information cannot be read or written, or the information itself changes. For this reason, it is desired to detect and remove the label L to which such a defective RFID tag Ta is attached before being attached to an article.

  Conventionally, as a technique for detecting a defect of the RFID tag T in the label L to which the RFID tag T is attached, for example, a technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-96814 (Patent Document 1), to an RFID tag attached to a label. There are known RFID reading / writing devices that read / write data and printers with RFID reading / writing devices that have built-in printer devices that print on labels. According to this printer, when the printer device performs printing on the label based on the data read from the RFID tag read by the RFID reading / writing device, the writing process to the RFID tag by the RFID reading / writing device fails. This is detected, and the printer device prints a special pattern on the label so that a defective label can be recognized. Therefore, it is conceivable to apply such a conventional printer defect detection technique to a labeling apparatus.

JP 2001-96814 A

  By the way, in this conventional printer, since the printer device prints on the label after the good / bad of the RFID tag is detected, it cannot be detected even if the RFID tag is defective due to a load at the time of printing. There was a problem. For this reason, when this conventional printer defect detection technology is applied to a labeling device, the same problem occurs if the labeling device has a printing mechanism, resulting in poor yield. There is.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and can detect a label with a defective RFID tag as much as possible at the final stage of conveyance, improve the accuracy of defect detection, and more reliably. An object of the present invention is to provide a label sticking device that improves the yield by detecting defects.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the label sticking apparatus of the present invention temporarily attaches a label to which a RFID chip having a memory chip for storing various information and a communication antenna connected to the memory chip is attached to a mount. conveys a state, in the label sticking apparatus for sticking the adsorbed article with a predetermined attaching position of the pre-Symbol labels temporarily attached to by Ri stand paper suction plate at a predetermined suction position, it is attached to the front Symbol label detecting means for detecting the good or bad of the RFID tag before Symbol suction plate, a determination unit configured to determine whether to attach the label to the article based on the results the detection means, by the suction plate by the determination unit a control means for controlling the application of the label, the detection unit includes a transmitting and receiving antenna for transmitting and receiving via said communication antenna to RFID Doug memory chip information And configured to include a has a configuration in which a said transmission reception antenna to the suction plate.

  Thereby, since the detection means detects the good / bad of the RFID tag on the suction plate, the detection is performed at the final stage before the label is attached to the article, so that the accuracy of the defect detection is improved, and more Since defects are reliably detected, the yield can be improved. In particular, if there is a printing mechanism in front of the suction plate, there will be a load on the RFID chip memory chip and communication antenna during printing, which may cause failure. Since the detection is performed at the final stage, defects can be reliably detected, and the accuracy of defect detection is reliably improved. Further, the defective RFID tag is not attached to the article.

  According to the label affixing device of the present invention, since the adsorbent plate detects the quality of the RFID tag attached to the label, detection is performed at the final stage before the label is affixed to the article. Therefore, the yield can be improved because defects can be detected more reliably. In particular, if there is a printing mechanism in front of the suction plate, there will be a load on the RFID chip memory chip and communication antenna during printing, which may cause failure. Since the detection is performed at the final stage, defects can be reliably detected, and the accuracy of defect detection can be reliably improved.

Hereinafter, based on an accompanying drawing, a label sticking device concerning an embodiment of the invention is explained in detail.
1 to 5 show a label sticking device S according to the first embodiment of the present invention. This label sticking device S sticks a label L to an article W that is conveyed by a conveyor C along a predetermined conveying direction.
As shown in FIG. 9, an RFID (Radio Fruquency IDntification) tag T is attached to the label L, and the label L is temporarily attached to a belt-like mount D in order. The RFID tag T includes a loop-shaped communication antenna Tb connected to a memory chip Ta that stores various information.

The label sticking device S includes a machine base 1, a label supply unit 2 provided on the machine base 1, and a label sticking unit 10.
The label supply unit 2 rotatably supports the roll 3 around which the mount D on which the label L provided with the RFID tag T is temporarily attached is wound, and sends out the mount D. The mount D sent out from the label supply unit 2 is transported by the label transport mechanism 4. In the label transport mechanism 4, the mount D is transported by a plurality of feed rollers provided on the machine base 1, folded back to a peeling roller (not shown), and the label L is peeled off, and then wound on a reel (not shown). It is done.

The label attaching unit 10 includes a box-like support 11 provided on the machine base 1 and a suction plate 12 provided below the support 11 so as to be movable back and forth. The suction plate 12 sucks the label L that is temporarily attached to the mount D at the predetermined suction position X at the time of retraction and is folded back by the peeling roller and peeled off, and the label L is attached to the article W at the predetermined sticking position Y at the time of advancement. Affix it. The suction plate 12 is provided with a plurality of small holes (not shown) for sucking air for sucking the surface of the label L. The suction plate 12 is supported so as to be able to move back and forth with respect to the base 14 via a coil spring 13 that is constantly biased to the forward movement position.
In addition, the base 14 is provided in an air cylinder device 15 that moves the suction plate 12 to the suction position X when moving backward and to the sticking position Y when moving forward. The air cylinder device 15 includes a piston 15a and a cylinder 15b to which a base 14 is attached. The cylinder 15b is housed in the support 11 and fixed thereto.

Further, in front of the suction position X of the suction plate 12, a printing mechanism 16 that performs required printing on the label L in the process of transporting the mount D is provided. The printing mechanism 16 includes a platen 17 and the platen. 17 and a thermal head 18 for printing on the label L.
A sensor 19 for detecting the label L is provided in front of the thermal head 18 in order to detect the printing base point of the label L.

  Furthermore, the label sticking device S includes a detection unit 20 that detects the quality of the RFID tag attached to the label L, and a discard unit 30 that separates and discards the label L from the mount D when the detection unit 20 detects a failure. And is configured.

  The detection means 20 is provided at a position along the moving path of the label L, and reads / writes specific information to the memory chip Ta of the RFID tag T via the communication antenna Tb and reads the written information again. 21 is provided. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the read / write device 21 is provided in a transmission / reception antenna 22 for transmitting / receiving information to / from the memory chip Ta of the RFID tag T via a communication antenna Tb, and a control unit 40 described later. An RFID writing / reading control circuit 56 for writing / reading to / from the RFID is provided. The transmitting / receiving antenna 22 is attached to the suction plate 12 via a cushion material 23 and is covered with a surface rubber 24. In this case, since the device provided on the suction plate 12 is the transmission / reception antenna 22, it can be easily attached to the suction plate 12 and the function of the suction plate 12 can be easily secured. Further, since the transmission / reception antenna 22 is attached to the suction plate 12 via the cushion material 23, the transmission / reception antenna 22 is protected. Furthermore, since the transmission / reception antenna 22 is covered with the rubber 24, the transmission / reception antenna 22 is also protected by this.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the detection means 20 is connected to the control unit 40, and when the information written by the read / write device 21 and the specific information storage means 25 for storing specific information is read A judgment means 26 for judging whether the product is good or bad by comparing the information stored in the information with the specific information stored in the specific information storage means 25, and an abnormal signal sending means 27 for sending an abnormal signal when the judgment means 26 judges that it is defective. It is prepared for. That is, when the written information is different from the read information, or when the written information cannot be read, it is determined as defective. When the determination unit 26 determines that the defect is defective, an abnormal signal is sent to the control unit 40.

The discarding means 30 includes a moving mechanism 31 that moves the suction plate 12 from the suction position X to a discard position Z different from the pasting position Y. The moving mechanism 31 is provided on the machine base 1 and is driven to support the suction plate 12 so that the suction plate 12 can be moved to two positions of the suction position X and the discard position Z, and a drive unit 31a for driving the support body 11. And is configured.
As shown in FIG. 3, the support 11 is provided on the machine base 1 so as to be rotatable about a vertical shaft 32 through a hinge 32 a. A spring 34 is provided on the vertical shaft 32 and constantly biases the support 11 toward the suction position X side. The drive unit 31a includes an air cylinder device 33 that is provided on the machine base 1 and rotates the support 11 by moving forward and backward. The air cylinder device 33 is provided with a cylinder 33a fixed to the machine base 1 so as to be able to advance and retreat in the cylinder 33a. And a piston 33b positioned at the position Z. The piston 33b and the support 11 are connected via a link mechanism 35.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the discarding unit 30 is connected to the control unit 40, and the suction plate 12 is moved from the suction position X to the discarding position Z based on the abnormality signal due to the failure detection of the detection unit 20. The moving mechanism control means 36 for controlling the moving mechanism 31 to move and the suction of the suction plate 12 based on the failure detection of the detection means 20 are made effective so that the label L related to the failure is sucked to the suction plate 12, and A suction plate control means 37 for disabling the suction of the suction plate 12 at the disposal position Z of the plate 12 and separating the defective label L from the suction plate 12 is provided.
Reference numeral 38 denotes a disposal box 38 that receives and stocks the defective label L separated from the suction plate 12 at the disposal position Z.

FIG. 5 shows the configuration of the control unit 40 that implements the functions of the specific information storage unit 25, the determination unit 26, the abnormal signal transmission unit 27, the movement mechanism control unit 36, the suction plate control unit 37, and the like. In the control unit 40, 41 is a CPU that performs overall control, 42 is a RAM having a flag, a work area, a print development area, an RFID information storage area, etc. 43 is a printer control program, various fixed data, control table data, and adsorption pasting The ROM stores information such as a control program and an RFID control program.
Further, 44 is a data / control bus, 45 is a label transport control circuit for controlling the label transport mechanism 4, 46 is a thermal head control circuit for controlling the thermal head 18, and 47 is a sensor 19 for performing label detection. And a label detection circuit performed by the transmission sensor 49, 52 is an operation panel control circuit for controlling an operation panel 53 (not shown), 54 is an online communication control circuit for communicating with the host PC 55, and 56 is an RFID via the transmission / reception antenna 22. RFID writing / reading control circuit for writing / reading to / from, 57 a sticking control circuit for driving the air cylinder device 15 and suction pressing of the suction plate 12, and 58 a moving mechanism control circuit for controlling the moving mechanism 31. .

Therefore, according to the label sticking apparatus S according to this embodiment, the label L is stuck on the article W as follows. This will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
First, the label L is transported from the label supply unit 2 by the label transport mechanism 4 while being temporarily attached to the mount D. When the sensor 19 detects the label L, the thermal head 18 of the printing mechanism 16 causes the label L The required printing is performed (S11).
Thereafter, when the label L is peeled off by the peeling roller, the suction plate 12 of the label sticking unit 10 positioned at the suction position X sucks the label L (S12). At the time of this adsorption, specific information is written from the transmission / reception antenna 22 of the read / write device 21 to the memory chip Ta of the RFID tag T via the communication antenna Tb and the written information is read again.

  Then, when the information written by the read / write device 21 is read by the determination means 26, the read information is compared with the specific information stored in the specific information storage means 25, and good / bad is determined (S13). The determination means 26 matches the written information and the read information, and determines that the information is good when they match. On the other hand, when they do not match, that is, when the written information is different from the read information, or when the written information cannot be read, it is judged as defective.

  In this case, the information written by the read / write device 21 is used to determine whether it is good or bad. Therefore, it is not necessary to prepare information for detection separately, and the determination efficiency is improved accordingly. Further, since the transmission / reception antenna 22 of the read / write device 21 is provided on the suction plate 12, detection is performed at the final stage before sticking to the article W, so that the accuracy of defect detection is improved and more reliable. Therefore, it is possible to detect defects and improve the yield. In particular, when required printing is performed on the label L by the thermal head 18 of the printing mechanism 16, a load is applied to the memory chip Ta of the RFID tag T and the communication antenna Tb, which may cause a failure. Since the detection is performed at the final stage after passing through the printing mechanism 16, it is possible to reliably detect defects in the thermal head 18 of the printing mechanism 16, and the accuracy of defect detection is reliably improved.

  When the determination means 26 determines that it is good (NO in S13), since there is no abnormality, the piston 15a of the air cylinder device 15 of the label applying unit 10 advances at a predetermined timing, whereby the suction plate 12 is moved to the article W. , The contact is made with the article W (attachment position Y), and the label L is attached to the article W (S14). After the sticking, the suction plate 12 is returned to the suction position X again and stands by.

On the other hand, when the determination means 26 determines that the defect is defective (YES in S13), it is abnormal, so an abnormality signal is sent from the abnormality signal sending means 27. Based on this abnormality signal, the suction plate control means 37 moves the label L. While holding the suction effectively (S15), the moving mechanism control means 36 drives the piston 33b of the air cylinder device 33 of the moving mechanism 31 to move backward. As a result, the support 11 of the label affixing portion 10 is rotated, and the suction plate 12 is moved from the suction position X to the discard position Z. When the suction plate control means 37 reaches the discard position Z, the suction plate control means 37 sucks the label L. Is disabled (S16). As a result, the label L determined to be defective is discarded in the disposal box 38. Thereafter, the moving mechanism control means 36 drives the piston 33b of the air cylinder device 33 of the moving mechanism 31 to advance. Thereby, the suction plate 12 is returned to the suction position X again and stands by.
In the embodiment, the print contents printed on the label L determined to be defective are reprinted on the next label L.

  In this case, since the label L related to the defect is stored in the disposal box 38 in a state separated from the mount D, the memory chip Ta and the antenna Tb of the RFID tag T can be easily taken out and processed separately. Further, since the label L related to the defect is moved to a position different from the suction position X, which is the discarding position Z, by the moving mechanism 31 and discarded, it is possible to prevent a situation where the label L falls to the article W side or enters another device. And surely discarded. Furthermore, the moving mechanism 31 only drives the support body 11 with the drive part 31a. Moreover, since the support body 11 is rotatable and driven by the forward and backward movement of the air cylinder device 33 of the drive part 31a, the drive mechanism 31 is driven. However, the apparatus can be configured relatively easily.

  7 and 8 show a label sticking device S according to the second embodiment of the present invention. This is configured in substantially the same manner as in the first embodiment, but unlike the above, the suction plate 12 is not a label pressing type but an air injection type. Therefore, the suction plate 12 is directly attached to the piston 15 a of the air cylinder device 15. Moreover, the structure of the moving mechanism 31 of the discarding means 30 is different. The moving mechanism 31 is provided on the machine base 1 and is driven to support the suction plate 12 so that the suction plate 12 can be moved to two positions of the suction position X and the discard position Z, and a driving unit 60 that drives the support body 11. And is configured.

  The support 11 is rotatably provided on the machine base 1 around the horizontal shaft 61. The drive unit 60 is installed between the machine base 1 and the support body 11 in a tensioned state. The drive spring 60 biases the suction plate 12 to the suction position X via the support body 11 and positions the suction spring 12 on the machine base 1. An air cylinder device 63 that is provided and rotates the support 11 against the urging force of the coil spring 62 at the time of advance to place the suction plate 12 in the discard position Z is provided. The air cylinder device 63 includes a cylinder 63a fixed to the machine base 1 and a piston 63b that is provided so as to be able to advance and retreat in the cylinder 63a and presses the support body 11 when advanced to move the suction plate 12 to the disposal position Z. Yes. Reference numeral 64 denotes a roller which is provided at the tip of the piston and presses the support 11. The transmission / reception antenna 22 of the read / write device 21 of the detection means 20 is provided on the suction plate 12. Therefore, the second embodiment also provides substantially the same operations and effects as the first embodiment.

In the above embodiment, when a defect of the RFID tag attached to the label is detected, the discarding unit 30 automatically discards the label related to the defect. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to this. The abnormal signal may be used in any way, such as by stopping the device based on the abnormal signal, turning on the alarm lamp, or sounding the alarm buzzer, and removing the label related to the defect manually. . In the above-described embodiment, the printing mechanism 16 is provided. However, the printing mechanism 16 is not necessarily limited thereto, and a printing mechanism without a printing mechanism may be appropriately changed.
In the first and second embodiments, the read / write device 21 includes the transmission / reception antenna 22 and the RFID write / read control circuit 56, and the transmission / reception antenna 22 is provided on the suction plate 12. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to this, and the adsorption plate 12 may be provided with the transmission / reception antenna 22 and the control circuit 56 integrated. In short, in the above embodiment, any device may be used as long as a part or all of the read / write device is provided on the suction plate.

It is a figure which shows the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention, (a) is a front view, (b) is a side view. It is a top view which shows the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a principal part perspective view which shows the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows typically the structure of the suction plate of the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control part of the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 2nd embodiment of this invention, (a) is a front view, (b) is a side view. It is a top view which shows the label sticking apparatus which concerns on 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the label with which the RFID tag which the label sticking apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention handles was attached.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS S Label sticking apparatus C Conveyor W Article L Label T RFID tag Ta Memory chip Tb Communication antenna D Mount 1 Machine stand 2 Label supply part 3 Roll 4 Label conveyance mechanism 10 Label sticking part 11 Support body 12 Adsorption plate 13 Coil spring 14 Base X Adsorption position Y Pasting position Z Disposal position 15 Air cylinder device 15a Piston 15b Cylinder 16 Printing mechanism 17 Platen 18 Thermal head 19 Sensor 20 Detection means 21 Read / write device 22 Transmission / reception antenna 23 Cushion material 24 Surface rubber 25 Specific information storage means 26 Judgment Means 27 Abnormal signal sending means 30 Throwing means 31 Moving mechanism 31a Drive unit 32 Vertical shaft 32a Hinge 33 Air cylinder device 33a Cylinder 33b Piston 34 Spring 35 Link mechanism 36 Moving mechanism control means 37 Adsorption plate Control means 38 waste box 40 control unit 41 CPU
42 RAM
43 ROM
44 Bus 45 Label transport control circuit 46 Thermal head control circuit 47 Label detection circuit 48 Reflection sensor 49 Transmission sensor 52 Operation panel control circuit 53 Operation panel 54 Online communication control circuit 55 PC
56 RFID writing / reading control circuit 57 Adhesion control circuit 58 Moving mechanism control circuit 60 Drive unit 61 Horizontal shaft 62 Coil spring 63 Air cylinder device 63a Cylinder 63b Piston 64 Roller

Claims (1)

Labels RFID Doug is attached with a memory chip and a communication antenna connected to the memory chip for storing various information conveys while temporarily attached to the backing sheet, tentative due Ri stand paper suction plate in the label sticking apparatus which adsorbs to wear has been pre-Symbol label at a predetermined suction position affixed to the article at a predetermined attaching position,
Detecting means for detecting the good or bad of the RFID tag is attached before Symbol label before Symbol suction plate, determining means for determining whether or not affixed to the article the label based on the results of the detecting means, wherein Control means for controlling the sticking of the label by the suction plate by the judging means ,
The detection means includes a transmission / reception antenna that transmits and receives information to and from the memory chip of the RFID tag via a communication antenna.
A label affixing device, wherein the transmitting / receiving antenna is provided on the suction plate.

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