TWI854575B - Equipment for automatically removing straps - Google Patents

Abstract

A kind of equipment for automatically removing straps includes an automatic cutting device and an automatic pulling device separated by a working area. The automatic cutting device performs a cutting action to break the straps in the working area. The automatic pulling device catches the straps before the cutting action is performed and brings the straps away from the box after the cutting action is finished.

Description

Strap on automatic removal device

The present invention relates to a method and device for removing a strap tied to a box, and in particular to an automatic strap removal device.

Using a strapping machine to strap a box so that one or more polypropylene straps are tied to the box is a very common packaging process. This packaging process is also used in the semiconductor industry. For example, after the wafer box is loaded into an outer box, the strapping machine is used to tie the polypropylene strap to the outer box. However, after the outer box with the straps is transported to a destination factory, based on production or processing needs, the factory staff must manually cut the straps on the outer box and pull them away from the outer box before opening the outer box and taking out the wafer boxes. So far, the straps are still cut and pulled manually, which is very labor-consuming and time-consuming and needs to be improved urgently.

In order to solve the above problems derived from the existing manual cutting and pulling of straps, the present invention provides an automatic strap removal device, which can automatically remove one or more straps tied to a box. More specifically, the present invention provides an automatic strap removal device including an automatic strap breaking device and an automatic strap pulling device. The automatic strap breaking device and the automatic strap pulling device are separated by an operating area. The automatic strap breaking device is used to perform a strap breaking action on a strap on a box located in the operating area to break the strap. The automatic strap-pulling device is used to grab the strap before the automatic strap-breaking device performs the strap-breaking action, and to pull the grabbed strap away from the box after the automatic strap-breaking device completes the strap-breaking action.

In a preferred embodiment, the automatic strap-breaking device of the present invention is used to cut off a front section of the strap, and the automatic strap-pulling device is used to grab a rear section of the strap before the automatic strap-breaking device performs the strap-breaking action, and pull the grabbed strap away from the box after the automatic strap-breaking device completes the strap-breaking action.

In a preferred embodiment, the automatic strap-breaking device of the present invention includes a strap-breaking portion and a transfer mechanism. The strap-breaking portion can be moved to a strap-breaking position that can act on a strap on a box, and performs a strap-breaking action at the strap-breaking position to break the strap. The transfer mechanism is used to drive the strap-breaking portion to move from an original position to the strap-breaking position, and after the strap-breaking portion completes the strap-breaking action, drive the strap-breaking portion to move from the strap-breaking position back to the original position.

In a preferred embodiment, the transfer mechanism of the automatic tape-breaking device of the present invention includes a base, a moving platform that can move on the base, a first driving part located on the base and used to drive the moving platform to move, and a second driving part located on the moving platform and used to drive the tape-breaking part to move.

In a preferred embodiment, the strap-breaking portion of the automatic strap-breaking device of the present invention is a pneumatic scissors or an electric scissors for cutting the strap.

In a preferred embodiment, the first driving part of the automatic strap-breaking device of the present invention can drive the movable platform to move toward the box to a position where the strap-breaking part is aligned with one side of the strap, and the second driving part of the automatic strap-breaking device drives the strap-breaking part from the position to move toward the strap to the strap-breaking position, so that the strap enters the notch of a scissors of the strap-breaking part.

The present invention also provides an automatic strapping device, which includes a strap gripping part and a transfer part. The strap gripping part can move from an original position to a strap gripping position, and can grab a strap on a box at the strap gripping position, and move from the strap gripping position back to the original position while grabbing the strap. The transfer part is used to drive the strap gripping part to perform the aforementioned movement.

In a preferred embodiment, the automatic strap-pulling device of the present invention includes a recovery device located below the original position of the strap-grabbing portion, wherein the strap-grabbing portion that has grasped the strap releases the strap when returning to its original position so that the strap falls into the recovery device.

In a preferred embodiment, the recycling device of the present invention has a shredder wheel, and the rotating shredder wheel can roll in the strap and shred it.

In a preferred embodiment, the automatic strap-pulling device of the present invention includes a guide device located before the recovery device. The gripping portion that has grasped the strap will first pass through the guide device before returning to its original position. The guide device is used to guide the strap passing through it to move toward the recovery device.

In a preferred embodiment, the guide device of the present invention includes a base, a lifting cylinder and a lower roller installed on the base, an upper roller located directly above the lower roller and driven to be lifted by the lifting cylinder, and a detector installed on the base and used to detect the strap, wherein one of the upper roller and the lower roller is a driving wheel, and the other is an idler wheel.

The present invention also provides a method for automatically removing a strap, comprising: firstly, causing an automatic strap-pulling device to grab a strap that has been tied to a box; then causing an automatic strap-breaking device to act on the strap to break the strap; and causing the automatic strap-pulling device to pull the broken strap away from the box.

In a preferred embodiment, the box in the method of the present invention is placed in a working area between the automatic drawstring device and the automatic break strap device, and then the automatic drawstring device clamps a rear section of the strap, and then the automatic break strap device cuts off a front section of the strap, and then the automatic drawstring device pulls the grabbed strap backwards away from the box.

In a preferred embodiment, the method of the present invention further includes: providing a recovery device; and the automatic strapping device pulls the strap to the recovery device and releases it.

In a preferred embodiment, the method of the present invention further includes: providing a guiding device; and guiding the strap released from the automatic strapping device to move to the recovery device by the guiding device.

8: Strap

81: First part

82: The latter part

9: Box

91: Front side

92: rear side

901: Gap

902: Gap

100: Automatic tape breaking device

200:Working area

300: Automatic drawstring device

21: Mobile stage

22: First drive unit

23: Second drive unit

24: Belt breaking section

241: Belt breaking assembly

25: Detector

31:Transfer Department

311: Sliding seat

312: Slide table

313: Second drive unit

314: Grab belt unit

32: Recovery device

321: Funnel-shaped entrance

322: Cutting wheel

33: Guidance device

331: Pedestal

332: Upper roller

333: Lower roller

334: Lifting cylinder

335: Detector

335a: Detection light

336: Interval

FIG1 shows a schematic diagram (top view) of a preferred embodiment of the automatic strap removal device of the present invention; FIG2 shows a schematic diagram of a box 9 with a strap 8 attached; FIG3 shows a schematic diagram of an automatic strap-breaking device 100 of the preferred embodiment of the present invention and a box 9 located next to it; FIG4 to FIG8 show schematic diagrams (top view) of the automatic strap-pulling device 300 of the preferred embodiment of the present invention grabbing the strap 8; FIG9 shows the strap-breaking device 100 of the preferred embodiment of the present invention 0; Figures 10 to 11 show schematic diagrams of the preferred embodiment of the present invention executing the action of cutting the strap 8 (top view); Figure 12 shows the action of the automatic strapping device 300 of the preferred embodiment of the present invention pulling the cut strap 8 away from the box 9 (top view); Figure 13 shows a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a strapping guide device of the preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figures 14 to 16 show schematic diagrams of the action of the strapping guide device of the preferred embodiment of the present invention (side view).

FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the automatic strap removal device of the present invention, which is used to remove one or more straps 8 shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 from a box 9. The strap 8 is automatically tied to the box 9 by an automatic packaging machine (not shown in the figure). In this preferred embodiment, the box 9 is used to store wafer boxes, such as a front opening wafer shipping box (Front Opening Shipping Box, FOSB) or a front opening wafer transfer box (Front Opening Unified Pod, FOUP). The strap 8 is usually made of polypropylene plastic tape, however, this is only an example, and the applicable objects of the present invention are not limited to the aforementioned.

As shown in FIG2 , there is a gap 901 between a front side 91 of the box 9 and a front section 81 of each strap 8 that ties the box 9, and there is a gap 902 between a rear side 92 of the box 9 and a rear section 82 of each strap 8. A strap-breaking portion 24 (see FIG1 ) of the strap-automatic removal device of the present invention can cut, sever, sever or truncate the strap 8 through the gap 901. A strap-grabbing portion 314 (see FIG1 ) of the strap-automatic removal device of the present invention can grasp the strap 8 through the gap 902. In this preferred embodiment, the gaps 901 and 902 are formed together with the strap 8 based on the shape of the box 9. However, if the shape of the box 9 can only allow the strap 8 to be flat against the front side 91 and the rear side 92 of the box 9 and the gaps 901 and 902 cannot be formed naturally, then two supporting mechanisms (not shown in the figure) can be used to support the strap 8 from the front side 91 and the rear side 92 of the box 9 respectively, so as to generate the gaps 901 and 902.

As shown in FIG1 , the automatic strap removal device of the present invention includes an automatic strap-breaking device 100 and an automatic strap-pulling device 300. The automatic strap-breaking device 100 and the automatic strap-pulling device 300 are separated by a working area 200. The automatic strap-breaking device 100 faces one side (e.g., the front side 91) of the box 9 in the working area 200, and the automatic strap-pulling device 300 faces another side (e.g., the rear side 92) of the box 9 in the working area. The automatic strap-breaking device 100 is used to perform a strap-breaking action on one or more straps 8 so that the one or more straps 8 are broken (see FIGS. 8 , 10 , and 11 ). The automatic strap-pulling device 300 is used to grab one or more straps 8 before the automatic strap-breaking device 100 performs the strap-breaking action (see Figures 1, 4 to 8), and to pull the grabbed one or more straps 8 away from the box 9 after the automatic strap-breaking device 100 completes the strap-breaking action (see Figures 11 and 12).

The automatic strap-pulling device 300 of the present invention uses a transfer unit 31 to drive the gripping unit 314 from an original position (see FIG. 1) to a gripping position (see FIG. 5). The gripping unit 314 is used to grab the strap 8 on the box 9 at the gripping position. After the automatic strap-breaking device 100 completes the strap-breaking action, the transfer unit 31 drives the gripping unit 314 to move from the gripping position back to the original position, and thus pulls the gripped strap 8 away from the box 9 (see FIG. 12).

In this preferred embodiment, as shown in FIG1 , the transfer part 31 includes a slide 311, a slide 312 that can slide forward and backward on the slide 311, a first drive part (not shown) for driving the slide 312 to slide, and a second drive part 313 located on the slide 312 and for driving the belt gripping part 314 to move. The first drive part can be a hydraulic cylinder or a pneumatic cylinder for pushing the slide 312, and the slide 312 can move forward and backward along the slide rail 311a on the slide 311 under the extension and contraction of the first drive part. The second drive part 313 can be a hydraulic cylinder or a pneumatic cylinder, and the belt gripping part 314 can move left and right under the extension and contraction of the second drive part 313. The strap gripping part 314 can use an existing pneumatic clamp or an electric clamp to clamp the strap 8, but is not limited thereto. For example, it can also be a hook that can hook the strap 8.

In this preferred embodiment, there are two transfer parts 31 and two gripping parts 314, and the two transfer parts 31 each drive the two gripping parts 314 to move, and each gripping part 314 is responsible for grabbing a strap 8. The number of gripping parts 314 increases or decreases according to the number of straps 8, and the number of transfer parts 31 increases or decreases according to the number of gripping parts 314. However, with appropriate changes in the mechanism, a single gripping part 314 can also grab multiple straps 8.

The automatic tape-breaking device 100 of the present invention drives the tape-breaking unit 24 from an original position (see FIG. 1 and FIG. 3) to a tape-breaking position (see FIG. 11) by a transfer mechanism, and the tape-breaking unit 24 is used to perform a tape-breaking action at the tape-breaking position to break the strap 8 on the box 9. After the tape-breaking unit 24 completes the tape-breaking action, the transfer mechanism drives the tape-breaking unit 24 to move from the tape-breaking position back to the original position.

In this preferred embodiment, as shown in FIG9 , the transfer mechanism includes a base 1, a moving platform 21 that can move on the base 1, a first driving part 22 located on the base 1 and used to drive the moving platform 21 to move, and a second driving part 23 located on the moving platform 21 and used to drive the belt-breaking part 24 to move. The first driving part 22 can be a hydraulic cylinder or a pneumatic cylinder, and the moving platform 21 can move forward and backward along the slide rail 11 on the base 1 under the extension and contraction of the first driving part 22. The second driving part 23 can be a hydraulic cylinder or a pneumatic cylinder, and the belt-breaking part 24 can move left and right under the extension and contraction of the second driving part 23. The cutting portion 24 can be made of existing pneumatic scissors or electric scissors, but is not limited thereto. For example, the cutting portion 24 can also be made of pneumatic saws, ultrasonic knives or other suitable pneumatic knives or electric knives, and even laser knives are not excluded.

In this preferred embodiment, there are two second drive parts 23 and two breaking parts 24, and the two second drive parts 23 drive the two breaking parts 24 to move left and right, and each breaking part 24 is responsible for shearing, cutting, severing, or truncating a strap 8. The number of breaking parts 24 increases or decreases corresponding to the number of straps 8, and the number of second drive parts 23 increases or decreases corresponding to the number of breaking parts 24. However, with appropriate changes in the mechanism, a single breaking part 24 can also cut, cut, sever, or truncate multiple straps 8.

In this preferred embodiment, the present invention further includes at least one detector 25 disposed on the moving platform 21 of the automatic tape-breaking device 100. The detector 25 is used to detect the tape 8 on the box 9, and it can be an existing photoelectric detector. In addition, the number of detectors 25 increases or decreases corresponding to the number of tapes 8. In this preferred embodiment, there are two detectors 25, which are located on the side of the two tape-breaking parts 24.

As shown in FIG1 , the strap gripping unit 314 and the strap breaking unit 24 are initially located at their respective original positions, and the box 9 is located in the working area 200 between the automatic strap breaking device 100 and the automatic strap pulling device 300. Specifically, the box 9 is placed on a platform (not shown) located in the working area 200 or is transported to the working area 200 by a conveyor belt (not shown). After the box 9 arrives at the working area 200, the strap 8 is first detected by the detector 25. If the detector 25 detects the strap 8, it means that the box 9 is already in the working area 200 and the front section 81 and the rear section 82 of the strap 8 are also respectively located at positions where the strap breaking section 24 and the strap grabbing section 314 can act on them. At this time, a computer control unit (not shown in the figure) coupled to the detector 25 issues a start notification to notify the transfer section 31 to start operating. If the strap 8 is not detected, it means that the box 9 is not located at the standby position, or the strap 8 does not exist, or the strap 8 is not located at a position where the strap breaking section 24 can act on it. At this time, the computer control unit issues a warning message to notify personnel to handle it, and the transfer section 31 is in an unactivated state.

When the transfer part 31 receives the start notification from the computer control unit, the first drive part of the transfer part 31 drives the slide 312 to move toward the rear side 92 of the box 9, so that the gripping part 314 and the second drive part 313 move to one side of the strap 8 along with the slide 312. At this time, as shown in FIG. 4 , the gripping part 314 faces the rear section 82 of the strap 8 and the above-mentioned gap 902. Since the gripping part 314 in this preferred embodiment is the pneumatic clamp or the electric clamp, the clamping mouth of the pneumatic clamp or the electric clamp faces the strap 8 at this time.

Next, the second driving part 313 of the transfer part 31 drives the belt grasping part 314 to move toward the strap 8 and the gap 902, so that the belt grasping part 314 moves to the belt grasping position where the rear section 82 of the strap 8 can be grasped, as shown in Figures 5 and 6. In this preferred embodiment, the strap 8 just enters the clamping mouth of the pneumatic clamp or the electric clamp at this time. Then, the belt grasping part 314 grasps the rear section 82 of the strap 8 at the belt grasping position, as shown in Figures 7 and 8. In this preferred embodiment, the belt grasping part 314 grasps the strap 8 by clamping.

After the strap gripping part 314 of the automatic strap pulling device 300 of the present invention grabs the strap 8, the automatic strap breaking device 100 of the present invention starts to perform the following operations: First, as shown in FIG8, the first driving part 22 of the transfer mechanism of the automatic strap breaking device 100 drives the moving platform 21 to move toward the front side 91 of the box 9, so that the strap breaking part 24 moves with the moving platform 21 to one side of the front section 81 of the strap 8, as shown in FIG10. At this time, a strap breaking component 241 of the strap breaking part 24 faces the front section 81 of the strap 8 and the above-mentioned gap 901. Since the strap breaking component 241 in this preferred embodiment is a pair of scissors driven by a pneumatic cylinder, the center of the cut of the scissors faces the strap 8 at this time.

Next, as shown in FIG. 11 , the second driving part 23 of the transfer mechanism of the automatic strap-breaking device 100 of the present invention drives the strap-breaking part 24 to move toward the front section 81 of the strap 8, so that the strap-breaking part 24 moves to the strap-breaking position where it can act on the front section 81 of the strap 8. In this preferred embodiment, the strap 8 just enters the center of the cut of the scissors at this time. Then, the strap-breaking part 24 performs the strap-breaking action at the strap-breaking position to break the strap 8. In this preferred embodiment, this strap-breaking action is a cutting action of the scissors cutting the strap 8.

It should be noted that if the box 9 can be accurately placed in the working area 200 and the strap 8 can also be located at the predetermined correct position, then the above-mentioned detector 25 can be unnecessary.

Once the strap-breaking unit 24 completes the strap-breaking action, it means that the strap 8 has been broken from the front section 81. At this time, the gripping unit 314 still grips the rear section 82 of the strap 8. Then, the first driving unit of the transfer unit 31 drives the slide 312 back to its original position. During this process, the gripping unit 314 that has gripped the strap 8 moves away from the box 9 along with the slide 312, so that the strap 8 that has been broken by the strap-breaking unit 24 is pulled away from the box 9 by the gripping unit 314. At the same time, driven by the transfer mechanism of the automatic strap-breaking device 100, the strap-breaking unit 24 moves from the strap-breaking position back to the original position shown in Figures 1 and 3.

Please refer to FIG. 1 . The present invention further includes a recovery device 32 located below the original position of the gripping portion 314 (only a funnel-shaped inlet 321 and a cutter wheel 322 of the recovery device 32 are shown in the figure). As shown in FIG. 12 , the gripping portion 314 that has gripped the strap 8 will release the strap 8 when it returns to its original position along with the slide 312 so that the strap 8 falls into the recovery device 32. After the strap 8 falls into the recovery device 32, it is then cut into pieces by the rotating cutter wheel 322.

In this preferred embodiment, please refer to Figures 12 and 13. The present invention also includes a guiding device 33 located before the recovery device 32. The gripping portion 314 that has grasped the strap 8 will pass through the guiding device 33 before returning to its original position along with the slide 312. The guiding device 33 is used to guide the strap 8 passing through it so that all the straps 8 can be smoothly rolled in and shredded by the shredder wheel 322 of the recovery device 32. In more detail, the guide device 33 includes a base 331, a lifting cylinder 334 and a lower roller 333 disposed on the base 331, an upper roller 332 located directly above the lower roller 333 and driven to be lifted by the lifting cylinder 334, and a detector 335 disposed on the base 331 and coupled to the computer control unit. As shown in Figures 13 and 14, a gap 336 is maintained between the upper roller 332 and the lower roller 333, and the gap 336 is directly opposite to the belt gripping portion 314. The upper roller 332 is a freely rotatable idler wheel, and the lower roller 333 is a driving wheel driven to rotate by a motor (not shown in the figure). When the gripping portion 314 that has gripped the strap 8 moves to its original position along with the slide 312, it will inevitably pass through the gap 336 between the upper roller 332 and the lower roller 333. In this preferred embodiment, the detection light 335a of the detector 335 has a width range, and as long as the strap 8 passes through this width range, the detector 335 will detect it. As shown in Figures 12 and 15, when the slide 312 returns to its original position, the gripping portion 314 on the slide 312 will move with the strap 8 through the gap 336 to the top of the recovery device 32 and release the strap 8 so that the strap 8 falls into the recovery device 32. At the same time, the computer control unit has detected that the strap 8 has passed the gap 336 through the detector 335, and therefore notifies the lifting cylinder 334 to drive the upper roller 332 down to a closed position, and notifies the motor to start driving the lower roller 333 to rotate. At this time, as shown in Figure 16, the upper roller 332 and the lower roller 333 clamp the strap 8 and drive the strap 8 to move forward into the inside of the recovery device 32, so that the strap 8 can be smoothly rolled in and shredded by the reel wheel 322 of the recovery device 32 from beginning to end. However, it should be pointed out that the guide device 33 is only auxiliary and not a necessary configuration. It can be configured or omitted according to needs.

It can be seen from the description of the above embodiments that the above-mentioned method of automatically removing the strap can be implemented by the automatic strap-breaking device 100 and the automatic strap-pulling device 300, which will not be described in detail.

In summary, the present invention can achieve automatic removal of one or more straps 8 on a box 9 through its automatic strap-breaking device 100 and automatic strap-pulling device 300, thereby greatly saving manpower and time.

8: Strap

81: First part

82: The latter part

9: Box

91: Front side

92: rear side

901: Gap

902: Gap

100: Automatic tape breaking device

200:Working area

300: Automatic drawstring device

241: Belt breaking assembly

31:Transfer Department

311: Sliding seat

312: Slide table

313: Second drive unit

314: Grab belt unit

32: Recovery device

321: Funnel-shaped entrance

322: Cutting wheel

33: Guidance device

Claims (10)

An automatic strap removal device includes an automatic strap-breaking device and an automatic strap-pulling device, wherein the automatic strap-breaking device and the automatic strap-pulling device are separated by a working area and face each other; the automatic strap-breaking device is located in front of the working area and is used to perform a strap-breaking action on a front section of a strap on a box in the working area so that the front section of the strap is broken; the automatic strap-pulling device The strap device is located behind the working area, and the automatic strap-breaking device, the working area and the automatic strap-pulling device are arranged in sequence along a straight path. The automatic strap-pulling device can grab a rear section of the strap before the automatic strap-breaking device performs the strap-breaking action, and can pull the grabbed strap back a distance along the straight path after the automatic strap-breaking device performs the strap-breaking action. The automatic strap removal device as described in claim 1, wherein the automatic strap pulling device comprises: a strap grabbing portion, which can be moved from an original position to a strap grabbing position, and can grab the strap at the strap grabbing position, and can be moved from the strap grabbing position back to the original position after the automatic strap breaking device completes the strap breaking action; and a transfer portion, which is used to drive the strap grabbing portion to perform the above-mentioned movement. An automatic strap removal device as described in claim 2, wherein the automatic strap pulling device includes a recovery device located below the original position of the strap gripping portion, wherein the strap gripping portion that has gripped the strap releases the strap when returning to its original position so that the strap falls into the recovery device. The automatic strap removal device as described in claim 3, wherein the recovery device has a cutter wheel, and the rotating cutter wheel can roll in the strap and cut it into pieces. The automatic strap removal device as described in claim 3 includes a guide device located before the recovery device. The strap gripping portion that has grasped the strap will pass through the guide device before returning to its original position. The guide device is used to guide the strap passing through it to move toward the recovery device. The automatic strap removal device as described in claim 5, wherein the guide device includes a base, a lifting cylinder and a lower roller disposed on the base, an upper roller located directly above the lower roller and driven to be lifted by the lifting cylinder, and a detector disposed on the base and used to detect the strap, wherein one of the upper roller and the lower roller is a driving wheel and the other is an idler wheel. The automatic strap removal device as described in claim 1, wherein the automatic strap breaking device comprises: a strap breaking portion that can be moved to a strap breaking position that can act on a strap on a box, and performs a strap breaking action at the strap breaking position to break the strap; and a transfer mechanism that drives the strap breaking portion to move from an original position to the strap breaking position, and drives the strap breaking portion to move from the strap breaking position back to the original position after the strap breaking portion completes the strap breaking action. The automatic strap removal device as described in claim 7, wherein the transfer mechanism of the automatic strap-breaking device includes a base, a moving platform that can move on the base, a first driving unit located on the base and used to drive the moving platform to move, and a second driving unit located on the moving platform and used to drive the strap-breaking unit to move. An automatic strap removal device as described in claim 7 or 8, wherein the strap-breaking portion of the automatic strap-breaking device is a pneumatic scissors or an electric scissors for cutting the strap. As described in claim 9, the first driving part of the automatic strap-breaking device can drive the mobile platform to move toward the box to a position where the strap-breaking part is aligned with one side of the strap, and the second driving part of the automatic strap-breaking device drives the strap-breaking part from the position to move toward the strap to the strap-breaking position, so that the strap enters the notch of a scissor of the strap-breaking part.

Images