JP5284886B2 - Melon packaging equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a melon boxing device that automatically picks up a melon placed on a conveyor such as a conveyor and transports the melon from the conveyor.

Fruits such as melons carried to the fruit selection are placed on a tray and transported from the receiving part to the boxing part by a conveyor or other transport device, and the quality of sugar content, appearance, size, etc. is judged during transport And boxed for each quality in the boxing section.
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known a device that is installed at the end portion of a transport device and picks up fruits that are placed on a tray and automatically boxes them (see Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2).
In this boxing device, a box standby unit for waiting for an empty box for storage is arranged on the side of a transfer device for transferring fruits, and a plurality of suction cups for adsorbing fruits are provided above the transfer device and the box standby unit, respectively. It is installed so as to be able to reciprocate between and above and below.

In this boxing device, the suction cup is lowered on the conveying device to adsorb the fruit on the tray, and the suction cup is raised and then moved above the box standby section to change the arrangement of the suction cup and lower it. The fruit is lowered inside the box, and then the suction cup is raised and returned to the upper side of the conveying device.
By the way, melon, especially among fruits, has a fruit pattern that stands up from the surface, and the fruit pattern is placed on the tray with the fruit pattern facing up. It will be stored in the box facing up. Then, the height of the box becomes large, which is bulky and inconvenient during transportation.

JP 2000-142614 A JP-A-8-26212

  A problem to be solved by the present invention is that a melon packaging device that can reduce the height of a melon storage box by tilting the melon and storing it in the box so that the fruit pattern is shifted slightly from the right side. Is to provide.

The melon boxing device of the present invention includes a melon standby unit provided at the end of a transport device that transports a melon placed with a fruit handle up, and an empty box standby unit installed adjacent to the melon standby unit A melon holding part that can hold and release the melon, can reciprocate between the upper part of the melon standby part and the upper part of the empty box standby part, and can move up and down. A tilting device for tilting in the direction is provided.
The transport device transports a melon on a tray, and the melon standby portion can be provided with a guide rail that slidably engages with the lower edge of the tray in the transport direction.

The tilting device is disposed on a gantry along the width direction of the melon standby portion, supports the melon standby portion, and can rotate about one end portion; and the other end portion of the support arm And a pedestal, and a link arm that can be bent at an intermediate portion, and a piston cylinder that bends and stretches the link arm as it expands and contracts.
A plurality of melon holding portions are provided, and each of the melon standby portions is composed of two rows of parallel standby conveyors that wait for a plurality of melons arranged in a row, and a tilting device that tilts each of these standby conveyors is provided. The support arm may rotate around the end portion on the opposite edge side of the two rows of alignment conveyors.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the melon standby section is tilted, the melon pattern placed on the melon standby section is displaced from directly above. When stored in a box installed in the standby section, the melon is stored with the handle slightly shifted to the side. As a result, the height of the box can be reduced, reducing costs for packaging and transportation. It becomes possible to do.
According to the invention which concerns on Claim 2, even if it inclines a melon standby part, the tray which mounted the melon does not slide down.
According to the invention which concerns on Claim 3, it is possible to incline a melon standby part with the tilting apparatus of a simple structure.
According to the invention which concerns on Claim 4, many melons can be boxed at a time in a box.

It is a top view of the conveying apparatus and empty box standby part which concern on the Example of this invention. It is a side view of the melon boxing apparatus which shows the Example of this invention. 1 is an end view of a melon packaging apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention. It is an end view of a melon standby part and a tilting device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view of the melon standby part and tilting apparatus which concern on the Example of this invention. It is a top view of the box which accommodated the melon.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
The melon boxing device of the present invention is a device that automatically boxes melons according to quality in a fruit selection field or the like, and conveys melon B placed on a tray A as shown in FIGS. The melon standby unit 2 provided at the end of the transport device 1, installed adjacent to the melon standby unit 2, holds and releases the melon B, and the empty box standby unit 3 on which the box C for storing melon is placed and waits. The melon holding part which consists of the suction cup 4 which can be reciprocated between the upper direction of the melon waiting | standby part 2 and the upper direction of the empty box waiting | standby part 3 and can be raised / lowered is provided.

The transport device 1 is composed of a chain conveyor or the like, and although not shown, an empty tray A is placed on the transport surface at the entrance of the transport device 1, and a melon B is placed on the tray A with the handle on top. Placed.
And while measuring the quality of melon B, such as the weight, sugar content, presence / absence of scratches, color, shape, etc., and displaying the quality, sort the melon B according to the measured quality, In this state, the sheet is conveyed to the melon standby unit 2 through two rows of parallel alignment conveyors 5.

The melon standby section 2 is composed of two rows of parallel standby conveyors 6 that are continuously downstream of the alignment conveyor 5 and are intermittently driven. On each of the alignment conveyors 5, the trays A on which the melons B are placed are in close contact with each other and are aligned in a row, and each of the trays A is left as it is (three in the example shown in the figure). It is sent.
As shown in FIG. 4, guide rails 7 made of a channel material that is slidably engaged with the lower edge of the tray A in the conveying direction are arranged on both sides of the standby conveyor 6 so that the openings face each other. It is.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, below the standby conveyor 6, a tilting device 8 that tilts each standby conveyor 6 in the width direction of the transport device 1 is installed.
The tilting device 8 includes a support arm 10 disposed above the gantry 9 along the width direction of the transport device 1, a link arm 11 that connects the gantry 9 and the support arm 10, and a piston that bends and stretches the link arm 11. And cylinder 12.
The support arm 10 is provided at the front and rear portions of the standby conveyor 6 in the transport direction, and is attached to the lower surface of the standby conveyor 6 to support the standby conveyor 6.
Also, one end of the support arm 10 (the opposite end of the two rows of standby conveyors 6) is bent upward, and the tip of the support arm 10 rotates about the shaft 13 along the conveying direction of the standby conveyor 6. Yes.

The link arm 11 is formed by pivotally attaching the lower end portion of the first arm 15 and the upper end portion of the second arm 16, and is installed at the front and rear portions of the standby conveyor 6 in the transport direction.
The upper end of the first arm 15 is pivotally attached to the connecting member 14, and the lower end of the second arm 16 is pivotally attached to the gantry 9.
That is, the link arm 11 can be bent at an intermediate portion, and connects the other end of the support arm 10 and the gantry 9.
Further, a connecting member 14 is installed in the vicinity of the upper end of the second arm 16 arranged at the front and rear, the tip of the piston rod 12a of the piston cylinder 12 is pivotally attached to the connecting member 14, and the cylinder 12b is attached to the mount 9. It can be pivotally attached.

Accordingly, as the piston rod 12a moves forward and backward and the piston cylinder 12 expands and contracts, the link arm 11 bends and stretches, and the other end of the support arm 10 connected to the upper end of the link arm 11 moves up and down.
As a result, the support arm 10 rotates about the shaft 13, and the standby conveyor 6 supported by the support arm 10 rotates in the width direction.
The rotation range of the support arm 10 varies depending on the size of the melon B to be boxed, but the tray support surface of the standby conveyor 6 increases the outer edge (edge opposite to the shaft 13) to 30 degrees to 45 degrees. The range of reciprocation between the inclined state and the horizontal state.
Then, when the tray support surface of the standby conveyor 6 is horizontal, the melon B placed with the fruit pattern D facing upwards, the fruit pattern D is inward (on the side of the shaft 13) when the standby conveyor 6 is inclined. Tilt to slip.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the empty box standby unit 3 is provided adjacent to the side of the melon standby unit 2, and an empty box C is opened above the empty box standby unit 3. Supplied in.
In the inside of the box C supplied to the empty box standby unit 3, melon support receiving portions or partitions are stored in advance according to the number of stored melons in one box (FIG. 6). .
Further, an unloading path for unloading the box C storing the melon B for the next process extends from the empty box standby unit 3.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a plurality of suction cups 4 (six in the example shown in the figure) are installed in one boxing device, and each melon standby section 2 vacuum-sucks one melon B. At the same time, the melon B adsorbed in the empty box standby unit 3 is released.
Each suction cup 4 is suspended from a movable member 18, and the movable member 18 is attached to a suction cup support frame 19 that is slightly larger than the planar shape of the melon standby portion 2 so as to be movable in a plane. Although not shown in the drawing, the suction cup support frame 19 has a position on the plane of the movable member 18 in a line along the conveyance direction, and passes through the melon standby position on the standby conveyor 6 to pass through the inside of the box C. A guide member for guiding to the melon storage position is installed.

Above the melon standby unit 2 and the empty box standby unit 3, guide beams 21 extending in the direction intersecting the conveyance direction are respectively installed on the front and rear portions of the standby conveyor 6 in the conveyance direction.
A slide frame 20 is slidably attached to the front and rear guide beams 21, and a suction cup support frame 19 is attached to the slide frame 20 so as to be movable up and down.
Therefore, the suction cup 4 moves up and down as the suction cup support frame 19 moves up and down, and as the slide frame 20 moves along the guide beam 21, the upper part of the melon standby section 2 and the empty box standby section 3 are moved. The movable member 18 moves in a plane by being reciprocated between the movable member 18 and the movable member 18 while being guided by the guide member.
The structure of the driving device for the suction cup 4 is conventionally known, and the suction cup 4 is moved up and down while changing its arrangement, and reciprocated between the upper part of the melon standby part 2 and the upper part of the empty box standby part 3. If possible, it may be replaced with another device.

This melon boxing device performs boxing as follows.
The melon B placed on the tray A on the conveying device 1 with its handle facing up is judged in quality during conveyance, sorted according to quality, and arranged in two rows of the melon standby section 2 from the two rows of the alignment conveyor 5. The trays A are intermittently fed in a state where the trays A are in close contact with each other on the standby conveyor 6. The lower edge of the tray A sent to the standby conveyor 6 is engaged with the guide rail 7.
At this time, the piston rod 12a of the piston cylinder 12 is retracted, the link arm 11 is bent, and the tray support surface of the standby conveyor 6 is horizontal.
In addition, the slide frame 20 is above the melon standby section 2, the suction cup support frame 19 is raised, and the movable member 18 and the suction cup 4 are arranged in series.
Further, an empty box C is placed on the empty box standby unit 3 with its upper surface opened.

When melon B is fed into the melon standby section 2, the piston rod 12a of the piston cylinder 12 moves forward to extend the link arm 11, thereby rotating the support arm 10 so that the other end is raised.
Then, the standby conveyor 6 supported by the support arm 10 is tilted in the width direction, and the melon B on the standby conveyor 6 is also tilted so that the fruit pattern D is slightly displaced from directly above.
Since the lower edge of the tray A is engaged with the guide rail 7, there is no fear that the tray A slides down even if the standby conveyor 6 is inclined.

Thereafter, the suction cup support frame 19 descends, and the six movable members 18 attached to the suction cup support frame 19 and the suction cups 4 suspended from the movable members 18 are changed in the horizontal direction while being lowered, and the standby conveyor. Move on top of melon B on 6. The suction cups 4 that have been lowered adsorb melon B when they come into contact with each other.
When the suction cup 4 adsorbs melon B, the piston rod 12a of the piston cylinder 12 retracts, the link arm 11 bends, and the standby conveyor 6 returns to the horizontal.
Next, the suction cup support frame 19 rises and the slide frame 20 moves along the guide beam 21 above the empty box standby unit 3.

Next, the suction cup support frame 19 descends, and the suction cup 4 suspended from the suction cup support frame 19 changes its position in the horizontal direction while descending, and the melon in the box C placed on the empty box standby unit 3. Moves upward from the storage position.
When the melon B adsorbed by the suction cup 4 is placed in a predetermined position of the box C, the suction cup 4 releases the melon B. As shown in FIG. 6, the melons B in the box C are arranged in two rows of three, and the two rows of melons B are stored so as to be inclined so that the fruit pattern D is slightly displaced from directly above. .
Thereafter, the suction cup support frame 19 rises, the slide frame 20 returns to above the melon standby section 2, and the movable member 18 and the suction cup 4 return to the serial arrangement.
The box C in which the melon B is stored is carried out from the empty box standby unit 3.
The above process is repeated and packing is performed.

Depending on the size of the sorted melons B, in a boxing device that stores 5 or less melons B in one box, the number of suction cups corresponding to the number of melons B stored among the six suction cups 4 Use only 4.
Further, the structure of the tilting device 8 is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the piston cylinder advances and retreats longer than when the support arm 10 is rotated via the link arm 11, but the tip of the piston rod can be directly connected to the other end of the support arm 10. is there.

A tray B melon C box 1 conveying device 2 melon standby part 3 empty box standby part 4 sucker (melon holding part)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 Alignment conveyor 6 Standby conveyor 7 Guide rail 8 Tilt device 9 Mounting base 10 Support arm 11 Link arm 12 Piston cylinder 12a Piston rod 12b Cylinder 13 Axis 14 Connecting material 15 First arm 16 Second arm 18 Movable member 19 Suction cup support frame 20 Slide Frame 21 Guide beam

Claims (4)

  It can hold and release melons, a melon standby part provided at the end of the conveying device that conveys the melon placed with the handle on top, an empty box standby part installed adjacent to the melon standby part In the melon boxing device provided with a melon holding part capable of reciprocating between the upper part of the melon standby part and the upper part of the empty box standby part and capable of moving up and down, the melon standby part is inclined in the width direction. A melon boxing device comprising a tilting device.   The said conveyance apparatus carries a melon on a tray, and conveys it, The guide rail which slidably engages with the lower edge of a tray in the conveyance direction is provided in the said melon standby part. Melon boxing equipment.   The tilting device is disposed on a gantry along the width direction of the transfer device, supports the melon standby unit, and is rotatable about one end, and the other end of the support arm. The melon boxing device according to claim 1 or 2, comprising a link arm that connects the frame and is bent at an intermediate portion, and a piston cylinder that bends and stretches the link arm as it expands and contracts.   A plurality of melon holding portions each holding melons are provided, and each of the melon standby portions is composed of two rows of parallel standby conveyors for aligning and waiting for a plurality of melons, and each of the tilting devices tilts the standby conveyors. The melon boxing device according to claim 3, wherein the support arm of the tilting device rotates around an end portion on the opposite edge side of the two rows of standby conveyors.

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