JPH072360A - Transfer method and transfer device for stacked article - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a transfer method and a transfer device for stacked articles capable of stably supporting the stacked articles on a pallet. CONSTITUTION:In this transfer method of stacked articles, the article loading faces of a primary holding station A and a secondary holding station B are nearly horizontally positioned nearby to each other, a carriage 4 having the waiting position on the primary holding station A side horizontally movably supports a fork 5 for holding the bottom face of the stacked articles and a side face holding means 6 for holding at least the rear side face in the transfer direction of the articles to move the articles, and the side face holding means 6 is left on the secondary holding station B side. In this transfer device, the secondary holding station B side is provided with a transfer conveyor 20 for supporting a loading member 25 for arranging plural stacked articles and a position restricting means 7 for restricting the article transfer position, and the carriage 4 is movably provided between the primary holding station A and the secondary holding station B along the horizontal frame section of a main body frame 1.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and a transfer device for transferring stackable articles such as cases onto a mounting member such as a pallet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various transfer methods and various transfer devices have been used in a wide area such as a factory transporting work place and a field of physical distribution. For example, a loading device or a transfer device using a mounting member such as a pallet. The loading device has one article at a time or one step at a time.
There are a flow type robot patterner that stacks each row from the lower level, and a type that transfers articles that have been stacked in advance (stacked articles) together on a pallet. Examples of this stacking type transfer device include Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-48698 and Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 4-40034.

The structure shown in the above Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-48698 has a structure in which stacked articles are stacked by palletizing the stacked articles by locking the articles one by one. It is designed to securely hold and prevent falling of stacked articles so that orderly pallet stacking can be performed. The structure is such that one side surface of stacked articles is locked. A three-dimensionally movable locking body is provided below the locking body so as to be horizontally movable between an advancing position for horizontally supporting the article and a retracted position retracting from the lower side of the article to support the article. A fork and a plurality of stages of engagements that are vertically movable on the stacked article locking surface of the locking body and that are inserted into the side opening of each stacked article and engage with the lower edge of this opening. It is a pallet loading device equipped with a compound jaw.

Further, the above-mentioned Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 4-40034 aims at a device which can be installed in a small space for automatically loading stacked containers on a pallet and is simple and inexpensive. is there. Its configuration is a support table that supports a pallet and makes it movable, a device that moves this support table, a table that supports stacked containers, and a pusher that pushes the stacked containers on this table onto the pallet. A device for loading a stacking container onto a pallet is described, which includes a controller for automatically controlling the movement of a support base and the operation of a pusher.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the above-mentioned conventional apparatus and transfer method, when transferring stacked articles, a part of the stacked articles above or below is held and transferred to a pallet. As a result, the transferred article waits in an unstable state during the transfer, and there is a risk of vibration of a nearby machine or the like and tipping due to contact with another transferred article.

[0006] Conventionally, in a type in which pre-stacked (stacked) articles are collectively transferred onto a pallet, as a measure for stabilizing the stacked articles, for example, a plastic case can be retained by hooking and holding. It is limited to the products that can be used, or there is a method that locks by the engagement of the unevenness of the upper and lower cases when stacked like a 4-pin pinhole pattern. In this case, the stacking direction and arrangement In many cases, the transfer form is restricted because there is a specific pattern. In particular, when stacking and transferring articles that cannot be locked with hooks, such as a carton case, for example, when stacking articles with a plurality of types of article heights and the stacking heights are different, However, it is necessary to transfer the piles up to the top, that is, to stack the piles with different heights, but in this case, there is a high risk of collapse of stacked articles due to vibration, etc. It was extremely difficult to transfer them quickly and reliably in the stacked state.

The object of the present invention is to stack stacked articles, such as cardboard boxes, which cannot be locked by hooking means, on a pallet in this high stacked state, and stack the articles at different heights. An object of the present invention is to provide a high-performance transfer method and transfer device capable of stably supporting articles during this transfer operation even when the heights are different and avoiding falling of stacked articles.

[0008]

The above object of the present invention is to provide a side surface holding means for holding at least a side surface of a stacked article on the side of the primary holding station of the first transport system, the side surface being opposite to the moving direction, and the article. Bottom surface holding means for holding the bottom surface is arranged, and when the stacked articles are moved from the primary holding station to the secondary holding station of the second transport system,
After the stacked articles are positioned at the primary holding station, the side surface holding means and the bottom surface holding means are moved substantially horizontally to be held by both holding means, and subsequently the both holding means are horizontally moved. By the above, the stacked articles are sent to the secondary holding station side, and after the sending movement is completed, only the bottom surface holding means is retracted to the primary holding station side, and the stacked articles are transferred to the secondary holding station. This can be achieved by a stacking article transfer method in which the side surface holding means is moved back to the primary holding station side and returned to the standby position on the primary holding station side after being placed on the holding station.

A similar object of the present invention is to provide a transfer device for moving stacked articles from the primary holding station of the first carrying system to the secondary holding station of the second carrying system, An article mounting surface of the secondary holding station is positioned substantially horizontally and is close to it, and a carriage having a standby position on the side of the primary holding station includes a fork for holding a bottom surface of the stacked article and at least the article. Side transfer holding means for holding the rear side surface in the transfer direction are supported so as to be horizontally movable, and a transfer conveyor for supporting a mounting member for arranging a plurality of the stacked articles on the side of the secondary holding station, Position regulation means for regulating the transfer position is provided, and the carriage is arranged along the horizontal frame portion of the main body frame with the primary holding station and the secondary holding station. That is movably configured between the holding stations it can be achieved by the transfer device according to claim. Further, in this transfer device, the transfer operation can be made smoother by providing the primary holding station with an elevating device for moving the article holding surface of the station up and down.

[0010]

As described above, according to the method and apparatus of the present invention, when the stacked articles are transferred, the stacked articles are moved while pressing the rear side surface (lateral side surface if necessary) of the stacked articles and holding the bottom surface of the article. Since the support of the side surface of the article is released after the surface release is completed, it is possible to arrange the articles in a plane and transfer the articles in one or two steps because there are articles with a plurality of heights. It is not possible to do this, and the stacking row (
Even if the height of stacked articles (in a state of being piled up in a slender shape) is high, or if there is vibration or shock during the operation of a transfer device such as a fork, the stacked articles can be collapsed or overturned effectively. Can be suppressed.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a transfer device for carrying out the transfer method of the present invention shown in FIGS. 1 and 4 will be described below. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the transfer device of the present invention. Figure 2
FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a transfer device and a transport system related to this device. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view showing the operation of the transfer device. FIG. 4 is a flowchart when transferring stacked articles.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the transfer device 100 of this embodiment is provided with a primary holding station A at the end region of the carry-in conveyor 30 which is the first transfer system. It is configured to move the stacked articles P from the primary holding station A to the secondary holding station B located between the pallet carry-in conveyor 18 and the payout conveyor 19 forming the second transport system. The carry-in conveyor 30 is provided with a reversing device 15 for reversing the direction of the stacked articles P, and the articles can be stopped and cut out on the downstream side of the reversing device 15 and on the front side of the primary holding station A. Stoppers 16 and 17 are provided.

The rollers of the carry-in conveyor 30 are driven by, for example, the motor M2, and the stopper 17
The stacked articles P can be cut out to the primary holding station A in association with the release of the stop. Primary holding station A
The aligning conveyor 2 is provided with a plurality of rollers driven by a motor M6, and a fork 5 described later can be inserted between the rollers. Further, the conveyor frame 10 has a notch 11 corresponding to the fork 5.
Is provided so that the fork 5 can be easily moved even if the vertical movement of the alignment conveyor 2 (in the directions of arrows a and b) is small.

The article mounting surfaces of the primary holding station A and the secondary holding station B are positioned substantially horizontally. The carriage 4 having the standby position on the side of the primary holding station A is attached to the horizontal frame portion 1a of the main body frame 1 installed so as to straddle the stations A and B, and the roller is attached to the horizontal frame portion 1a. It is supported via R1 and is configured to be movable along the horizontal frame portion 1a between a primary holding station A and a secondary holding station B by a drive source such as a motor M7. In addition,
The drive structure of the carriage 4 is not particularly limited, but a rack and pinion type, a linear actuator, or the like can be used, for example. Further, in order to obtain the stop position accuracy of the carriage 4, an appropriate sensor (photo sensor or the like) (not shown) issues a control signal,
Based on this signal, an appropriate stopper or braking means can be operated to make the stop position accurate.

The carriage 4 has a fork 5 for holding the bottom surface of the stacked articles P and side surface holding means 6 for holding at least the rear side surface of the articles P in the transfer direction. The fork 5 is mounted on the rail 4c via the roller R3 and the motor M.
4 is configured to be movable. Further, the side surface holding means 6 is configured to be horizontally movable on the rail portions 4a and 4b by the driving force of the motor M3 via the roller R2. Further, the side surface holding means 6 has a plate-like structure that presses the rear surface of the stacked articles P as a minimum structure, and has a side surface 6a that can hold another side surface as necessary.

The accuracy of the moving positions of the fork 5 and the side surface holding means 6 can be set with high accuracy by appropriately detecting the position with a sensor as in the case of the carriage 4 described above. Also, various forms can be adopted in the driving method. Further, the primary holding station A is provided with an elevating device 3 for moving the article holding surface of the station up and down, and the elevating device 3 can make transfer operation smoother as described later.

On the side of the secondary holding station B, there is provided a transfer conveyor 20 for supporting a pallet 25 which is a mounting member for arranging a plurality of stacked articles P, and the transfer conveyor 20 is located at the most tip end side in the direction in which the articles are fed. The plate side position control means 7 for controlling the article transfer position is provided, and the side surface holding means 6 is provided.
With this position regulation means 7, the stacked articles P can be restrained from being sandwiched. The conveyor of the second transport system is not particularly limited, and in the figure, a chain conveyor driven by each motor M7, M8, M9 is schematically shown, but other various conveyors may be used. You can

The operation of the transfer device 100 configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, the empty pallet 25 is supplied from the magazine 22 to the stacking unit on the second transport system side. The stacked articles P whose orientation has been determined in advance on the side of the first transport system are carried into the alignment conveyor 2. Here, it is confirmed whether the alignment for one row is completed. If it is No, the loading operation is repeated. In the case of yes, the side holding means 6 moves forward and stops so that the row rear surfaces of the articles are aligned to hold the side surfaces of the stacked articles P.

After that, the fork 5 moves forward and stops at the lower optimum position of the article P. After that, the elevating device 3 such as a hydraulic system operates and the alignment conveyor 2 descends to transfer the stacked articles P onto the forks 5. After that, the carriage 4 advances toward the secondary holding station B, and the tip of the article hits the position regulating means 7 or the stacked article P in the front row and stops.

From this state, the fork 5 is retracted while the side holding means 6 is fixed, and the stacked articles P are loaded and transferred onto the pallet 25. The carriage 4 pulls the side surface holding means 6 and the forks 5 rearward (toward the primary holding station) and returns to the standby position. Check whether the loading of one pallet has been completed. In case of Know, the above-mentioned alignment conveyor 2
The operations after the loading of the stacked articles P into the stack are repeated. On the other hand, in the case of Yes, the actual pallet 25 on which the stacked articles P have been stacked is discharged from the secondary holding station B, and the transfer is completed. Then, it is confirmed whether or not this transfer work is repeated, and when it is performed, the above operation is repeated,
If not, stop operation. The empty pallets P may be loaded during the alignment operation of the stacked articles P on the alignment conveyor 2.

[0021]

As described above, according to the method and apparatus of the present invention, when transferring stacked articles, the stacked articles are moved while pressing the rear side surface (lateral side surface if necessary) of the stacked articles, Since the support of the side surface of the article is released after the release of the holding surface of the article bottom is completed, even if the height of the stacked article is high,
In addition, even if there is vibration or shock during the operation of the transfer device, the stacked articles can be transferred reliably without collapse or overturning. Therefore, stacked articles that cannot be locked by hooking means, such as corrugated boxes, can be transferred to a pallet, etc. as they are stacked, and in particular, stacking multiple articles of different heights makes it possible to achieve different stacking heights. In such a case, for example, even when transferring in a state where each row in the height direction is piled up to the uppermost stage in advance, the articles can be stably supported during this transfer work, and the stacked articles can be prevented from falling. It is possible to provide a transfer method and device which can be avoided and have high transfer workability.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a transfer device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing a transfer device and a transport system related to this device.

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view showing the operation of the transfer device.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for transferring stacked articles.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Main Frame 1a Horizontal Frame 2 Alignment Conveyor 3 Lifting Device 4 Carriage 4a, 4b, 4c Rails 5 Fork 6 Side Holding Means 6a Side Surface 7 Position Control Means 8 Alignment Conveyor Stand 9 Rollers 10 Alignment Conveyor Conveyor Frame 11 Cutting Notch 15 Reversing device 18 Pallet carry-in conveyor 19 Discharge conveyor 20 Transfer conveyor 21 Chain 22 Magazine for pallet supply 25 Pallet 30 Carry-in side conveyor (first transfer system) 40 Carry-out side conveyor (second transfer system) 100 Transfer Device A Primary holding station B Secondary holding station P Stacked articles M1 to M9 Motor

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A side surface holding means for holding at least a side surface of a stacked article on the side opposite to the moving direction and a bottom surface holding means for holding a bottom surface of the article are arranged on the primary holding station side of the first transport system, When moving the stacked articles from the primary holding station to the secondary holding station of the second transport system, after the stacked articles are positioned at the primary holding station, the side surface holding means and the bottom surface holding means To be held by both holding means by moving it substantially horizontally, and then by horizontally moving both holding means, the stacked articles are fed to the secondary holding station side and the feeding movement is completed. From then, after retracting only the bottom surface holding means to the primary holding station side, after placing the stacked articles on the secondary holding station, A method of transferring stacked articles, wherein the side surface holding means is retracted to the primary holding station side and returned to the standby position on the primary holding station side. 2. A transfer device for transferring stacked articles from a primary holding station of a first carrying system to a secondary holding station of a second carrying system, wherein: An article placement surface is positioned substantially horizontally and is close to it, and a carriage 4 having a standby position on the side of the primary holding station includes a fork 5 that holds the bottom surface of the stacked articles and at least a transfer direction of the articles. Side holding means 6 for holding the rear side are supported so as to be horizontally movable, and a mounting member 25 for arranging a plurality of the stacked articles is arranged on the side of the secondary holding station.
A transfer conveyor 20 that supports the transfer conveyor and a position control unit 7 that controls the transfer position of the article are provided, and the carriage 4 has the primary holding station and the secondary holding station along the horizontal frame portion 1a of the main body frame 1. A transfer device characterized by being configured to be movable between and. 3. The transfer device according to claim 3, wherein the primary holding station is provided with an elevating device for vertically moving an article holding surface of the station.