JP7224656B2 - Goods transfer device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an article transfer apparatus capable of arranging articles in a plurality of rows in a direction crossing the direction in which a plurality of articles are arranged and conveyed in a row in the conveying direction and transferring them to an article transfer section.

An article transfer device that holds a plurality of articles conveyed in a line by a conveyor in a predetermined number each by a holding means and converts them into an arrangement suitable for the shape of the case body when they are accommodated in a case body such as corrugated cardboard. has been proposed as Patent Document 1. An article transfer apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a plurality of holding means capable of holding an article, and in a state in which the plurality of holding means are arranged side by side along the article conveying direction, each holding means holds an article in a predetermined position. After holding the articles one by one and picking them up from the conveyor, each holding means is rotated by 90 degrees around the center of the arrangement direction of the held predetermined number of articles, and a plurality of holding means are moved close to each other so as to be in parallel. , forming a group of articles in which one row of articles is converted into a plurality of rows.

Japanese Patent No. 3664459

In the article transfer apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, each holding means rotates 90 degrees around the center in the direction in which a predetermined number of held articles are arranged. In order to do so, it is necessary to bring the holding means closer to each other by a distance that depends on the length from the center of rotation to the article at the end. .

It is an object of the present invention to provide an article transfer apparatus capable of improving processing capacity by efficiently converting a plurality of articles arranged in a row in the conveying direction into a plurality of rows in a direction intersecting the arrangement direction. aim.

The article transfer device of the invention according to claim 1 of the present application is
Articles (10, 11) are arranged in a plurality of rows in a direction crossing the direction in which the plurality of articles (10, 11) are arranged in a line and conveyed in the conveying direction, and transferred to an article transfer section (S2). In the on-board device,
a first holding means (12) and a second holding means (13) for separately holding the articles (10, 11) arranged in a row;
The first holding means (12) and the second holding means (13) for holding the articles (10, 11) arranged in a row are arranged so that the holding means (12, 13) are arranged at adjacent ends in the forward and backward directions in the conveying direction. and support shafts (40, 42) that are rotatably supported,
rotating the first holding means (12) and the second holding means (13) in opposite directions about the support shafts (40, 42);
The articles (10, 11) held by the first holding means (12) and the second holding means (13) are arranged in a plurality of rows in a direction crossing the direction in which the articles (10, 11) arranged in one row are arranged. It is characterized in that the article (10, 11) is transferred to the article transfer section (S2).
According to the first aspect of the invention, the first holding means and the second holding means for holding a predetermined number of articles are rotated in opposite directions about positions of adjacent ends of both holding means. Since the held articles are converted into a plurality of rows in a direction crossing the direction in which the articles are arranged in a single row, the distance between the row of articles held by the first holding means and the row of articles held by the second holding means is Short, clustered groups of articles can be efficiently formed to improve throughput.

In the invention according to claim 2, the article transfer section (S2) is provided on the side of the conveyer (15, 16) for conveying the articles (10, 11) arranged in the conveying direction,
The first holding means (12) and the second holding means (13) holding the plurality of articles (10, 11) conveyed by the conveyers (15, 16) are directed toward the article transfer section (S2). While moving with the support shafts (40, 42), the held articles (10, 11) are rotated in directions opposite to each other in a direction intersecting the direction in which the articles (10, 11) lined up in a row are arranged. It is characterized by being configured so as to be arranged in a plurality of rows.
According to the invention of claim 2, the held articles can be converted into a plurality of rows and efficiently transferred to the article transfer section. Also, the load applied to the article held on the end side away from the center of rotation can be reduced, and high-speed processing can be handled.

In the invention according to claim 3, the plurality of articles (10, 10, 10) conveyed to the article holding section (S1) holding the articles (10, 11) by the first holding means (12) and the second holding means (13). dividing means (25) for dividing 11) by the holding number held by each holding means (12, 13);
The first holding means (12) holds the articles (10, 11) and the second holding means (13) holds the articles (10, 11) so as to reduce the distance between the rows of the articles (10, 11). 12) and a width adjusting means (44) for bringing the second holding means (13) relatively close to each other.
According to the third aspect of the present invention, each holding means can hold the number of articles held without mistakes, and the rows of divided articles can be brought closer together by the width gathering means to be densely packed.

In the invention according to claim 4, guide members (22, 11) are positioned on both sides intersecting the conveying direction of the articles (10, 11) and guide the sideways of the articles (10, 11) conveyed side by side in the conveying direction. 22) and
actuating means (23) for moving the guide members (22, 22) between a guide position for guiding the side of the articles (10, 11) and a release position for separating from the articles (10, 11); prepared,
The actuating means (23) shifts the guide members (22, 22) to the guiding position when the plurality of articles (10, 11) are held by the first holding means (12) and the second holding means (13). to the release position to permit the movement of the articles (10, 11) to the article transfer section (S2).
According to the invention of claim 4, since the articles can be conveyed without disturbing the rows, it is possible to suppress holding errors by the holding means due to misalignment. Further, by moving the guide member to the release position, the article held by the holding means can be transferred to the article transfer section without any trouble.

In the invention according to claim 5, the articles (10, 11) have different sizes on the top surface and the bottom surface,
reversing means (17) for reversing the articles (10, 11) upside down on the upstream side in the conveying direction of the guide members (22, 22);
The reversing means (17) is configured to reverse the articles (10, 11) so that the plurality of articles (10, 11) arranged in the conveying direction are alternately oriented between the top surface and the bottom surface. Characterized by
According to the invention of claim 5, a plurality of articles having different sizes of the top surface and the bottom surface can be gathered compactly and transferred to the article transfer section.

According to the present invention, a plurality of articles arranged in a row in the conveying direction can be efficiently converted into a plurality of rows in a direction intersecting the arrangement direction to form an article group, thereby improving the processing capacity. can.

It is a schematic plan view showing an article transfer device. FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view showing an article alignment section of the transport conveyor; FIG. 4 is a schematic front view showing a state in which the articles in the article arranging section are held by holding means; FIG. 4 is a schematic side view showing a state in which an article is transferred using a holding means; It is explanatory drawing which makes an article into two rows from one row using a holding means. It is explanatory drawing which arrange|positions articles|goods from 1 row to 2 rows using the holding means of another Example. FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing the movement of articles when the holding means is rotated to change the orientation of the article row;

Next, a preferred embodiment of an article transfer apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 to 4 are schematic diagrams showing an article transfer device according to an embodiment. The article transfer device includes first holding means 12 and second holding means for holding a predetermined number of articles 10 and 11. FIG. 13, and support shafts 40, 42 for rotatably supporting the respective holding means 12, 13, and a plurality of articles arranged in an article conveying direction (conveying direction) described later in an article arranging section (article holding section) S1. 10 and 11 are held by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 while maintaining the number of rows arranged in the article arranging section S1 and picked up from the article arranging section S1. 13 are rotated in mutually opposite directions to transfer the articles 10 and 11 whose arrangement is changed to the article transfer section S2. In the embodiment, all (eight) articles 10 and 11 arranged in a row in the article arranging section S1 are divided into a plurality (four) each and held by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13. A case in which the articles 10 and 11 are picked up together, the directions of the articles 10 and 11 are changed by rotating them around the vertical axis, and the articles 10 and 11 are converted into two rows (a plurality of rows) and transferred to the article transfer section S2 will be described. .

As shown in FIG. 4, the articles 10 and 11 are containers containing ice, for example, and the top surface and the bottom surface are different in size (the top surface is larger than the bottom surface). In the embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, two conveyors 15 and 16 are arranged in parallel, and different types of truncated cone-shaped articles 10 and truncated pyramid-shaped articles are carried by the respective conveyors 15 and 16. 11 are arranged in a line and conveyed toward the article alignment sections S1 and S1 set on the conveyers 15 and 16, respectively. The transport conveyors 15 and 16 are belt conveyors that always run endless belts. Since the various means arranged in the article conveying paths of the respective conveying conveyors 15 and 16 are the same, the means relating to the conveying conveyor 16 for conveying the truncated pyramid-shaped article 11 will be explained, and the truncated cone-shaped article 10 will be explained. Means relating to the conveyer 15 for conveying are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted. A reversing means 17 is provided for rotating a clamping member that clamps the article 11 by 180 degrees while the conveyer 16 is conveying the article 11 to turn the article 11 upside down. The reversing means 17 vertically inverts every other article 11 conveyed by the conveying conveyor 16 with its upper surface facing upward, and alternates the orientation of the upper surface and the bottom surface of the articles 11 adjacent to each other on the conveying conveyor 16 . to be different. In this illustrated example, the bottom surface of the article 11 whose bottom surface faces upward is hatched in order to distinguish it from the article 11 whose upper surface faces upward.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, first guide members 18, 18 spaced apart in a direction intersecting the article conveying direction are provided downstream of the reversing means 17 on the conveying conveyor 16 in the article conveying direction. The first guide members 18, 18 guide the articles 11 which extend in length and are conveyed by the conveyer 16 from both sides. In front of the article alignment section S1 on the conveyer 16, a collecting means 19 is provided that moves between a regulation position for regulating the conveyance of the articles 11 conveyed by the conveyer 16 and a release position for releasing the regulation. The means 19 moves to the release position when a detection means (not shown) detects that a predetermined number (eight in this embodiment) of the articles 11 have gathered at the regulating position, allowing the collected articles 11 to be conveyed. Further, when the plurality of collected articles 11 are conveyed downstream from the gathering means 19, the preceding four articles 11 held by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 A first dividing means 20 is provided for separating the following four articles 11 which are held by a predetermined distance. The first dividing means 20 consists of a fixed member arranged on one side of the conveyer 16 across the article conveying path, and a pressing member positioned on the other side and moved back and forth with respect to the article conveying path by an operating means such as an air cylinder. is provided, and the leading article 11 of the four following articles 11 is clamped between the pressing member and the fixing member to temporarily restrict the transportation, so that the eight articles 11 are held by the holding means 12 and 13 It is configured to divide into two groups of numbers 4 and 4. Further, on the upstream side of the first dividing means 20, the 8 articles 11, which are the number held at one time by both the holding means 12 and 13 gathered by the gathering means 19, are regulated and the articles 11 subsequent to the eight articles 11 are separated. Separating means 21 are provided, and the separating means 21 separates the last article 11 of the eight articles 11 from the next article 11 by a predetermined distance. Note that the configuration of the separating means 21 is the same as that of the first dividing means 20 .

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, second guide members 22, 22 are spaced apart in a direction intersecting the article conveying direction in the article arranging section S1 and extend for a predetermined length in the article conveying direction. The article 11 conveyed by 16 is guided from both sides by second guide members 22 , 22 . The second guide members 22, 22 are moved between a guide position in which the article 11 is guided close to the article 11 and a release position in which the article 11 is laterally separated from the article 11 and the guide is released by an operating means 23 such as an air cylinder. It is configured to move (see Figure 4). The second guide members 22, 22 are positioned so as to support substantially the vertical center of the article 11 on the conveyer 16 at the guide position. Further, when the articles 11 aligned in the article aligning section S1 are held by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13, the operating means 23 moves the second guide members 22, 22 from the guide position to the release position. to allow the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 to pick up the article 11 . A regulating member 24 for regulating the transportation of the leading article 11 in the preceding group is provided in the article arranging section S1, and the article 11 succeeding the leading article 11 whose conveyance is regulated by the regulating member 24 is placed on the preceding article 11. Conveyance is regulated by abutment. Further, a second dividing means (dividing means) 25 for regulating the transportation of the leading article 11 in the trailing group divided by the first dividing means 20 is arranged upstream of the regulating member 24 . The second dividing means 25 includes a dividing member 26 that advances and retreats between the articles from the side of the conveyer 16, and an air cylinder or the like that moves the dividing member 26 between a regulating position and a release position for regulating the conveyance of the articles 11. and a driving means 27 of When the detection means (not shown) detects that the fourth article 11 of the preceding group has passed while the dividing member 26 is at the releasing position, the driving means 27 moves the dividing member 26 from the releasing position to the regulating position. and is configured to prevent the gap between the leading group and the trailing group from being narrowed. In the embodiment, the regulating member 24 and the dividing member 26 position the articles 11 of the leading group and the trailing group in the article aligning section S1.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, a box conveyer 28 is arranged on the side of the conveyer 16 separated from the conveyer 16 in a direction intersecting the article conveying direction. A semi-finished box 29, which is taken out from a sheet magazine (not shown) and is open at the upper side and the side of the article arranging section S1, is positioned at the article transfer section S2 on the box transport conveyor . In this embodiment, eight articles 11 lined up in a line at the article alignment section S1 on the transport conveyor 16 are picked up by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13, converted into two lines, and placed on the box transport conveyor 28. is configured to be transferred to the box 29 of the

As shown in FIG. 3, the first holding means 12 includes a suction pad 30a capable of sucking the upward surface of the articles 11 arranged in the article arranging section S1 on a first holder 30 having a predetermined length, which is arranged in the longitudinal direction. The number of articles 11 held by the first holding means 12 (four in the embodiment) are provided, and among the eight articles 11 lined up in the article arranging section S1, the four articles 11 in the preceding group are provided. can be sucked by each suction pad 30a. In addition, the second holding means 13 has a suction pad 31a capable of sucking the upward surface of the articles 11 arranged in the article arranging section S1 on the second holding member 31 having a predetermined length, spaced apart in the longitudinal direction. The number of articles 11 to be held by the second holding means 13 (four in the embodiment) is provided, and among the eight articles 11 lined up in the article aligning section S1, four articles 11 in the following group are attached to each suction pad. 31a is configured to be capable of being adsorbed. The first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are replaced with suction pads 30a and 31a having different numbers and intervals depending on the number and type of articles 10 and 11 to be sucked. FIG. 1 shows a state in which different articles 10 and 11 are conveyed by both conveyers 15 and 16, respectively. Only 10,11 are conveyed by the corresponding one conveying conveyor 15,16, the other conveying conveyor 15,16 does not convey the articles 10,11.

As shown in FIG. 4, an advancing/retreating mechanism 32 for moving the holding means 12, 13 forwards and backwards is arranged above the article alignment section S1 and the article transfer section S2. The advancing/retreating mechanism 32 is movably supported by a slide guide 33 extending in a transfer direction that intersects (perpendicularly) with the article conveying direction from the gathering means 19 of the conveyer 16 to the article arranging section S1. and a servomotor 35 as driving means for reciprocating the slider 34 back and forth in the transfer direction along the slide guide 33 . The servo motor 35 moves the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 above the article alignment section S1 and above the article transfer section S2 (box 29) set on the conveyor 15 or 16. (inside the ).

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the slider 34 is provided with an air cylinder 37 as elevating means connected to an elevating member 36 that supports the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 . The air cylinder 37 has a standby position N1 above the article aligning section S1 that does not interfere with the articles 10 and 11 conveyed by the conveying conveyors 15 and 16, and a position where the articles 10 and 11 aligned in the article arranging section S1 are placed at a standby position N1. Drive control is performed so that the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 move up and down between the holding position N2 where the surface facing upward is attracted. Moreover, the air cylinder 37 is positioned above the article transfer section S2 at a housing position N3 facing the inside of the box 29 waiting in the article transfer section S2 and a release position N3 at which the articles 10 and 11 are placed on the inner bottom surface of the box 29. Drive control is performed so that the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are vertically moved between the position N4 and the position N4. The heights of the standby position N1 and the accommodation position N3 are the same, and the articles 10 and 11 held by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 can be moved out of the box 29 without interfering with the bottom of the box 29. The height is set so that the articles 10 and 11 can enter from the side opening.

The article transfer device comprises rotating means 14 for rotating the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 in directions opposite to each other. As shown in FIG. 3, the rotating means 14 includes a first rotating part 38 that rotates the first holding means 12 around the vertical axis, and a second rotating part 38 that rotates the second holding means 13 around the vertical axis. and a rotating portion 39 . The first rotating part 38 is rotatably supported by the elevating member 36 and extends in the vertical direction. (support shaft) 40 and a first servomotor 41 as driving means for rotating the first support shaft 40 . The second rotating part 39 is rotatably supported by the elevating member 36, extends parallel to the first support shaft 40, and is connected to one longitudinal end of the second holder 31 of the second holding means 13. and a second servomotor 43 as a drive means for rotating the second support shaft 42 . By rotating the corresponding support shafts 40 and 42 by 90 degrees in the forward and reverse directions by the respective servo motors 41 and 43, the holders 30 and 31 are arranged so that the longitudinal direction of the holders 30 and 31 coincides with the article conveying direction. change in the crossing direction. The support shafts 40 and 42 are adjacent to each other in the direction in which the articles 11 are arranged in the article arranging section S1 in the direction in which the holders 30 and 31 are conveyed. By rotating both support shafts 40 and 42 in mutually opposite directions by both servomotors 41 and 43, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are connected to each other. Rotating around the positions of the adjacent ends, the ends separated from the support shafts 40 and 42 move relatively close to each other. That is, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are arranged in series so that the lengths of the holding tools 30 and 31 are arranged in series in the direction in which the articles 10 and 11 are arranged on the conveying conveyors 15 and 16 (the article conveying direction). 3), and a second form (see two-dot chain line in FIG. 4) in which the holders 30 and 31 are arranged in parallel with each other so that the lengths of the holders 30 and 31 intersect with the article conveying direction. 14. Then, the articles 11 lined up in the article arranging section S1 held by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 in the first form are moved to the second form by the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 in the second form. By converting, two rows are formed in a direction intersecting the direction in which the articles 11 are arranged in the article arranging section S1. In addition, in the first form of the holding means 12, 13, the rotating means 14 is such that the ends of the holding tools 30, 31 opposite to the ends on the connection side of the support shafts 40, 42 are connected to the article transfer section. The holding means 12, 13 are rotated so as to move toward the side away from S2. In the embodiment, the respective support shafts 40, 42 are positioned substantially directly above the suction pads 30a, 31a positioned on the adjacent end sides of the holders.

The article transfer apparatus of the embodiment includes a width adjusting means 44 for narrowing the distance between the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 in the second form. As shown in FIG. 3, the width adjusting means 44 includes a slide guide 45 disposed on the elevating member 36 and extending along the article conveying direction, and a slider 46 movably supported by the slide guide 45. and a servomotor 47 as driving means for moving the slider 46 along the slide guide 45 , and the slider 46 is provided so that the second rotating portion 39 moves integrally therewith. That is, by reciprocating the slider 46 along the slide guide 45 by the servomotor 47, the first support shaft 40 connected to the first holding means 12 and the second support shaft 42 connected to the second holding means 13 are connected. are configured to move relatively close together.

Next, the operation of the article transfer apparatus according to the embodiment will be described in the case where the truncated pyramid-shaped articles 11 conveyed in a line by the conveying conveyor 16 are transferred from one line to two lines. .

In the article transfer apparatus, as shown in FIG. 4, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are positioned at a standby position N1 above the article alignment section S1 on the transport conveyor 16. Positioned in a first configuration in series alignment in the article conveying direction. At the article transfer section S2 on the box transport conveyor 28, an empty semi-made box 29 stands by with the side opening facing the article alignment section S1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the articles 11 conveyed by the conveying conveyor 16 with their upper surfaces facing upward are conveyed at predetermined intervals. and the bottom surface are conveyed alternately in different states. As shown in FIG. 2, the articles 11 conveyed by the conveyer 16 are regulated by the collecting means 19 positioned at the regulating position, so that the following articles 11 are collected in a pressed state, and eight pieces are formed. The articles 11 are assembled in a row in the article conveying direction. When the eight articles 11 are gathered, the gathering means 19 moves from the restricted position to the released position, and the conveyance of the articles 11 is resumed. At this time, the transportation of the articles 11 in the trailing group is temporarily regulated by the first dividing means 20, and the leading group and the trailing group are divided so that they are separated by a predetermined distance. Eight articles 11 are conveyed toward S1. In addition, the separating means 21 regulates the transportation of the articles 11 on the upstream side until the transportation of the articles 11 of the trailing group is resumed, and the preceding eight articles 11 and the succeeding articles 11 are separated.

The eight articles 11 conveyed downstream from the gathering means 19 are guided so as to maintain their aligned state by the second guide members 22, 22 positioned at the guiding position. Since the leading article 11 of the preceding group conveyed by the conveying conveyor 16 is regulated by the regulating member 24, the four articles 11 of the preceding group are gathered in a pressed state. Further, when the detecting means detects that the four articles 11 have passed through the second dividing means 25, the dividing member 26 of the second dividing means 25 is moved by the driving means 27 from the released position to the regulated position. Since the transport of the leading article 11 of the trailing group is regulated by the dividing member 26, the four articles 11 of the trailing group are gathered in a pressed state. That is, in the article aligning section S1, the articles 11 of the two groups are gathered and aligned in the article conveying direction in a state in which the preceding group and the following group are divided. The first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 waiting in the first form at the waiting position N1 above the article alignment section S1 are lowered to the holding position N2 by the air cylinder 37 as shown in FIG. Then, the four articles 11 in the leading group lined up in the article aligning section S1 are sucked by the suction pads 30a of the first holding means 12, and the four articles 11 in the trailing group are picked up by the suction pads of the second holding means 13. It is adsorbed at 31a. By raising the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 to the standby position N1 by the air cylinder 37, the eight articles 11 are collectively picked up from the article alignment section S1. Before the article 11 is picked up from the article arranging section S1, the second guide members 22, 22 are moved to the release position by the operating means 23, turned upside down, and the large upper surface is positioned on the lower side. It allows an article 11 on the side to be picked up without being caught by the second guide members 22, 22. - 特許庁

When the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 reach the standby position N1, the first supporting shaft 40 and the second supporting shaft 42 are rotated by the first rotating portion 38 and the second rotating portion 39 of the rotating means 14. By rotating 90 degrees in mutually opposite directions, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are changed from the first form to the second form. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b), the eight articles 11 arranged in a row in the article conveying direction are replaced with a row of four articles 11 arranged in the transfer direction intersecting the article conveying direction. are converted into a two-row array aligned in the article conveying direction. In the direction intersecting the direction in which the articles 11 are arranged in a row in the article arranging section S1, there are four rows of two articles 11 arranged in the arrangement direction. Then, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 changed to the second form are brought relatively close to each other by the servomotor 47 of the width aligning means 44, thereby forming two rows of the articles 11 in each row. are brought closer to each other and the distance between them is shortened, forming an article group in which the articles 11 are densely packed (see FIG. 5(c)).

Next, the servo motor 35 of the advance/retreat mechanism 32 is driven to move the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 in the second form inside the box 29 positioned in the article transfer section S2. to the housing position N3. Then, after the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are lowered to the release position N4 by the air cylinder 37, the holding means 12 and 13 are released from the suction, so that the eight articles arranged in two rows are released. 11 is transferred inside the box 29 . After releasing the article 11, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are returned to the standby position N1 above the article alignment section S1 by the air cylinder 37, the width adjusting means 44 and the rotating means 14, and are in the first configuration. , and waits for the transfer of the next group of articles. When the transfer of the articles 11 to the boxes 29 is completed, the boxes 29 packed with the articles 11 are carried out to the next process by driving the box transfer conveyor 28, and the empty boxes 29 are transferred to the article transfer section S2. Positioned in

In the article transfer apparatus of the embodiment, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13, which are aligned in the article conveying direction, are rotated in opposite directions about the adjacent end sides in the first form. Since one row of articles 11 is converted into two rows, the separation distance between the rotation centers of both holding means 12 and 13 when the articles 11 are converted into two rows is short, and the articles held by the first holding means 12 The space between the row of 11 and the row of articles 11 held by the second holding means 13 can be efficiently reduced. In other words, a plurality of articles 11 arranged in a line in the article arranging section S1 can be transferred to the box 29 as the articles 11 that are efficiently converted into two rows, and the processing capacity can be improved.

In the article transfer apparatus of the embodiment, eight articles 11 are divided into a leading group held by the first holding means 12 and a trailing group held by the second holding means 13 in the article arranging section S1. Since the division means 25 divides the goods 11, the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 can hold the corresponding groups of articles 11 without making mistakes. In addition, even if the preceding group and the following group of the articles 11 are divided, the columns of each group can be brought closer together by the width aligning means 44 so that the articles 11 can be stored in the box 29. The article 11 can be smoothly accommodated without coming into contact with the box 29. - 特許庁

In the article transfer apparatus of the embodiment, the articles 11 conveyed by the conveyer 16 are guided by the second guide members 22, 22 without disturbing the rows, and the eight articles 11 are arranged in the article arranging section S1. are gathered in an aligned state, it is possible to suppress holding errors by the holding means 12 and 13 due to misalignment of the article 11 or the like. Further, by moving the second guide members 22, 22 to the release position, the article 11 is not brought into contact with the second guide members 22, 22. The article 11 held by the holding means 12 and 13 can be moved to the article transfer section S2 without any trouble. Furthermore, when a plurality of articles 11 having different sizes on the top surface and the bottom surface are collected as an article group, the adjacent articles 11 can be turned upside down to make the whole compact. The article 11 can be accommodated more smoothly without coming into contact with the box 29.

(About another example)
Next, another embodiment of the article transfer device will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. FIG. 6 and 7 show the movement of the article 11 held by the holding means 12 and 13. FIG.

The configuration of the article transfer apparatus of another embodiment is the same as that of the embodiment, but the operation in the step of converting the articles 11 into two rows and transferring them to the article transfer section S2 is different. That is, when the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 holding the eight articles 11 arranged in a row in the article arranging section S1 are raised from the holding position N2 to the standby position N1, the advancing/retreating mechanism 32 holds both of them. While moving the means 12 and 13 toward the article transfer section S2, the rotating means 14 starts to rotate both the holding means 12 and 13 . Further, until the articles 11 on the article transfer section S2 side of the holding means 12 and 13 are accommodated in the box 29, the width aligning means 44 aligns the row of the articles 11. As shown in FIG. That is, the articles 11 held by the two holding means 12 and 13 are moved toward the article transfer section S2, converted into two rows, and moved sideways to be accommodated in the box 29. FIG. Therefore, according to the article transfer apparatus of another embodiment, the article group can be accommodated in the box 29 in addition to the effect of shortening the time required to convert one row of articles 11 into two rows to form an article group. It is possible to shorten the time required to complete the processing, and it is possible to cope with the increase in speed. In addition, since both the holding means 12 and 13 are rotated in the direction in which the end side away from the center of rotation is separated from the article transfer section S2, the article 11 held there does not interfere with the box 29 and the article is transferred with a sufficient margin. It can be converted into two rows while moving toward the part S2.

Here, as shown in FIG. 7(a), when the holding means 13 (12) is rotated without moving the support shaft 42 (40) of the holding means 13 (12) in the first form in the transfer direction. , the amount of change L1 in the transfer direction of the article 11 until the article 11 held on the end side away from the center of rotation reaches the position where the article 11 assumes the second form is the radius of the support shaft 42 (40). corresponds to On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7B, when the support shaft 42 (40) of the holding means 13 (12) is moved toward the article transfer section S2 and the holding means 13 (12) is rotated, The amount of change L2 in the transfer direction until the article 11 held on the end side away from the center of rotation reaches the position where it assumes the second form is greater than when the support shaft 42 (40) is not moved in the transfer direction. It becomes smaller (L2<L1), so that when the arrangement of the articles 11 is changed (during rotation), the load applied to the articles 11 held on the end side away from the center of rotation can be reduced. That is, the speed at which the arrangement of the articles 11 is changed can be increased without dropping the articles 11 from the holding means 13 (12).

(Change example)
The present invention is not limited to the configuration of the embodiment or another embodiment, and can be modified, for example, as follows. Further, the configurations described in the examples and other examples can be applied in various forms within the scope of the present invention without being limited to the following modified examples.
(1) The rotation centers of the holding means 12 and 13 may be the ends adjacent to each other in the article conveying direction in the first embodiment. It may be a position shifted from the center.
(2) The holding of the article 11 by the holding means 12 and 13 is not limited to suction, but can be performed by pinching or gripping.
(3) Retraction mechanism 32 for advancing and retreating holding means 12 and 13, lifting means (air cylinder) 37 for raising and lowering, rotating means 14 for rotating both holding means 12 and 13 in opposite directions, etc. mechanism can be employed.
(4) It is possible to adopt a configuration in which the first holding means 12 and the second holding means 13 are changed in form by the arm unit of the robot and moved to the standby position N1, the holding position N2, the accommodation position N3 and the release position N4. can.
(5) The number of articles 11 held by each holding means 12, 13 is not limited to the same number and may be different.
(6) In the embodiment, the articles 10 and 11 are conveyed in a line by the conveying conveyors 15 and 16, and the articles 10 and 11 are arranged in a line in the article conveying direction in the article aligning section S1. , 16 convey the articles 10 and 11 in a plurality of rows in a direction intersecting the article conveying direction, and the articles 10 and 11 arranged in a plurality of rows in the direction intersecting the article conveying direction are held by both holding means 12 and 13 in the article arranging section S1. It is possible to adopt a configuration in which it is held and transferred by In this configuration, the suction pads 30a, 31a for holding the articles 10, 11 in the respective holding means 12, 13 may be provided in positions and numbers according to the arrangement of the articles 10, 11 arranged in the article arranging section S1. Also, if the rotation centers of the first and second holding means 12 and 13 are biased toward the rows of articles on the adjacent side when both holding means 12 and 13 rotate in opposite directions, the number of rows can be changed. It is possible to shorten the distance between rows of articles that are in close proximity to one another.
(7) In the embodiment, when different types of articles 10 and 11 are transferred, the holding means 12 and 13 are exchanged according to the type of the articles 10 and 11. A configuration can be employed in which the positions of the provided suction pads 30a and 31a can be changed in the longitudinal direction by adjusting means, and a plurality of types of articles 10 and 11 can be transferred by one type of holding means.

Reference Signs List 10 article 11 article 12 first holding means 13 second holding means 15 transport conveyor 16 transport conveyor 17 reversing means 22 second guide member 23 operating means 25 second dividing means (dividing means) 40 First support shaft (support shaft)
42 second support shaft (support shaft), 44 width adjusting means, S1 article alignment section (article holding section)
S2 Goods transfer section

Claims (5)

An article transfer device for arranging articles in a plurality of rows in a direction crossing the arranging direction of a plurality of articles conveyed in a row in a conveying direction and transferring the articles to an article transfer section,
a first holding means and a second holding means for holding a plurality of the articles arranged in a line separately;
a support shaft that rotatably supports each of the holding means on an end side where the first holding means and the second holding means for holding the articles arranged in a row are adjacent in the front and rear in the conveying direction;
rotating the first holding means and the second holding means about the support shaft in directions opposite to each other;
The articles held by the first holding means and the second holding means are transferred to the article transfer section as articles arranged in a plurality of rows in a direction crossing the arrangement direction of the articles arranged in one row. An article transfer device characterized by: The article transfer section is provided on the side of a conveyer that conveys articles arranged in a conveying direction,
The first holding means and the second holding means holding a plurality of articles conveyed by the conveyer are moved toward the article transfer section and rotated about the support shaft in opposite directions to hold the article. 2. The article transfer apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the articles are arranged in a plurality of rows in a direction crossing the direction in which the articles are arranged in one row. a dividing means for dividing the plurality of articles conveyed to the article holding portion holding the articles by the first holding means and the second holding means by the number of holding held by each holding means;
a means for moving the first holding means and the second holding means relatively close to each other so as to reduce the distance between the rows of the articles held by the first holding means and the articles held by the second holding means; 3. The article transfer device according to claim 1, further comprising: guide members positioned on both sides intersecting the conveying direction of the article and guiding the side of the article conveyed side by side in the conveying direction;
actuating means for moving the guide member to a guide position for guiding the side of the article and a release position for separating from the article;
When the plurality of articles are held by the first holding means and the second holding means, the operating means moves the guide member from the guide position to the release position to allow the movement of the articles to the article transfer section. 4. The article transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it is configured to The article has different sizes on the top surface and the bottom surface,
Inverting means for vertically inverting the article on the upstream side of the guide member in the conveying direction,
5. The article transfer apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the reversing means is configured to reverse a plurality of articles arranged in the conveying direction so that the orientations of the upper surface and the bottom surface of adjacent articles alternate.

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