JP7273308B2 - Goods Group Transfer Alignment Device - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an article group transporting and aligning device for laterally transporting and aligning a group of articles stacked on a conveyer in one or more rows.

In order to box or package a predetermined number of articles such as beverage packs, the articles conveyed on the conveyer are separated into a predetermined number of article groups while being densely packed, and the separated article groups are transferred laterally. There is known an apparatus for aligning by pressing (Patent Document 1). In the apparatus of Patent Document 1, a pair of vertical belts provided facing each other on the right and left sides of the conveyor hold an article on the conveyor, and the conveying speed of the vertical belts and the conveyor is adjusted to adjust the conveying speed of the conveyer. A short circuit in which the articles conveyed above are separated into groups of articles, the movement of the separated groups of articles is blocked by a stopper and guide plate arranged at the downstream end, and the groups of articles that are blocked and densely packed are arranged on the side. They are sequentially pushed out laterally by a pusher and aligned.

Japanese Patent No. 3071240

By the way, in Patent Document 1, a group of articles separated into 3 pieces by 1 row is moved sideways and aligned. There is a need to do. When the articles to be handled are small containers or other articles that are likely to tip over, the transfer speed cannot be increased in order to avoid the containers from tipping over during the side transfer operation. Therefore, there is a problem that it takes a long time for alignment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to perform a high-performance aligning operation in which a group of articles is transported to the side a plurality of times and aligned.

An article group separating and accumulating apparatus of the present invention comprises: a conveying conveyor for conveying articles; an aligning unit arranged on the side of the conveying conveyor; A transfer means is provided for transferring the article group on the transfer conveyor, and the transfer means moves the first and second article groups divided in the conveying direction in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, a first transfer means for transferring to first and second aligning positions of the aligning section; a second transfer means for transferring the second article group to a fourth aligning position, wherein the second, fourth and third aligning positions are arranged in this order in a direction intersecting the conveying direction to the conveying conveyor side; and the first alignment position is located farther from the conveying conveyor than the second alignment position, and the fourth alignment position is located farther from the conveying conveyor than the first alignment position. and the first and second article groups are aligned in a direction intersecting the conveying direction at the third and fourth alignment positions by driving the first and second transfer means. .

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the alignment operation|work which transfers a group of articles|goods to the side several times and aligns them can be performed with high performance.

1 is a plan view showing the arrangement of an article group separation device that is an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. It is the side view which looked at the conveyance conveyor of FIG. 1 from the downward side of FIG. It is sectional drawing which looked at the conveyance conveyor from the upstream. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the transfer section when the transport conveyor is viewed from the upstream side; It is the side view which looked at the 1st transfer apparatus from the lower side of FIG. 1 (it looked at the Y direction). It is the side view which looked at the 1st transfer apparatus from the upstream (X direction). FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the arrangement of first to fourth grippers attached to the base; It is the side view which looked at the structure below the base from the downstream of a conveyance conveyor to the upstream. FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a configuration in which first to fourth grippers grip first and second container groups; FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining separation processing operation of a group of containers on a transport conveyor using a star wheel, a front plate, and a rear finger; FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining separation processing operation of a group of containers on a transport conveyor using a star wheel, a front plate, and a rear finger; FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining separation processing operation of a group of containers on a transport conveyor using a star wheel, a front plate, and a rear finger; It is a figure explaining the rearrangement processing operation|movement of the goods group using a 1st transfer device and a 2nd transfer device. It is a figure explaining the rearrangement processing operation|movement of the goods group using a 1st transfer device and a 2nd transfer device.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the arrangement of an article processing apparatus equipped with an article group transporting and aligning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. It is a diagram.

For example, the article processing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment conveys small articles (resin containers) C in a plurality of rows (for example, two rows) in a state of being densely packed in the front and rear of the conveying direction, and a plurality of these (for example, each row) is conveyed. A container group separation and accumulation device (article group separation and accumulation device) 10A that separates and accumulates in the conveying direction (X direction) in a container group (article group) G densely packed every 10 pieces (20 pieces in total), and A container group transporting and aligning device (item group transfer alignment device) 10B. In FIG. 1, the container C is transported from the left side to the right side of the drawing by the transport conveyor 12, and is arranged adjacent to one side provided at the stacking position A downstream of the transport conveyor 12, as will be described later. It is transferred to an alignment plate (alignment section) 13 .

In this embodiment, the transport conveyor 12 is, for example, a two-row belt conveyor 12A. A braking mechanism is provided to separate from the container group G in front. The braking mechanism of this embodiment consists of a pair of star wheels (braking means) 14 arranged oppositely on both sides of the transport conveyor 12 .

The star wheel 14 is provided with a predetermined number of dents on its outer periphery to engage with the bodies of the containers C in each row conveyed on the conveyer 12 . Each star wheel 14 is synchronously rotated in opposite directions by a motor 14A. Each star wheel 14 is normally rotationally controlled so as to send out each row of containers C at the same speed as the transport conveyor 12 . Therefore, since the containers C are hardly braked by the starwheels 14, the containers C conveyed in a dense state on the conveyer 12 are discharged from the starwheels 14 and conveyed downstream while maintaining the dense state. be. On the other hand, when a predetermined number (10 in each row) of containers C pass, each star wheel 14 decelerates the rotation speed for a short time, and the containers C engaged with each star wheel 14 are braked. A gap is formed between the receiving container C and the container group G conveyed downstream from the container C receiving this braking.

The number of containers C passing through the star wheel 14 is recognized by the rotation angle of the star wheel 14, and the rotational speed of the motor 14A is controlled based on the recognized number of containers C. In this embodiment, the amount of rotation of the motor 14A is detected by an encoder or the like, and the number of containers C that have passed through the star wheel 14 is calculated based on this. Any counting method may be used, and a non-contact type sensor such as an optical sensor or other contact type sensor may be used.

In the transport conveyor 12, downstream of the star wheel 14, there is a mechanism (article group mechanism) that pinches the separated container group G from the front and rear in the transport direction (X direction) and transports it to the stacking position A in a close and stable state. matching means) is provided. In this embodiment, the mechanism includes a front plate (first engaging member) 16 that abuts on the leading container C of the container group G, and a rear finger (second engaging member) that abuts on the trailing container C of the container group G. ) 18.

The front plate 16 is a horizontally long plate-like member that extends across the conveyor 12 and abuts the front edge of the container C at the top of the container group G. It is supported and driven by front plate moving mechanisms 20 arranged along the twelve sides. On the other hand, the rear fingers 18 are a pair of L-shaped plate members.

The front plate moving mechanism 20 includes a front plate advance/retreat actuator 20A that projects the front plate 16 from the side of the conveyer 12 onto the conveyer 12 and retracts it sideways, A front plate reciprocating actuator 20B for reciprocating the abutted front plate 16 along the transport conveyor 12 is provided.

The rear finger moving mechanism 22 includes a support member 22A that supports the base end of each rear finger 18, an air cylinder 22B that supports each support member 22A so as to be able to reciprocate in opposite directions in the width direction of the conveyor, and an air cylinder 22B. A rear finger reciprocating motion actuator 22</b>C that reciprocates integrally with the rear finger 18 along the transport conveyor 12 is provided. The front plate reciprocating actuator 20B and the rear finger reciprocating actuator 22C are synchronously driven at the same speed as the conveyor 12 by servo motors 20C and 22D, respectively. Further, the front plate advancing/retreating actuator 20A is driven by a servomotor 20D.

At the stacking position A, on both sides of the belt conveyor 12A, liftable guides 24 are provided along the sides. The elevating guide 24 rises when the container C is slid and transferred on the transfer conveyor 12 by the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18, and prevents the container C from overturning sideways. On the other hand, when the container group G is moved to the stacking plate 13 on the side, the container group G is lowered and retracted under the conveying surface of the conveyer 12 . A fixed stopper 21 is provided at the downstream end of the transport conveyor 12 so that the container group G at the stacking position A is not moved further downstream by the transport conveyor 12 .

A corner of the alignment plate 13 on the upstream side along the transport conveyor 12 is partly moved by a movable plate in order to prevent interference with the rear finger 18 on the side of the alignment plate 13 that reciprocates along the transport conveyor 12 . 13A. The movable plate 13A is at the retracted position where it does not interfere with the rear finger 18 when the rear finger 18 moves to the stacking position A, and when moving the container group G on the transfer plate 12 to the alignment plate 13, the alignment Forming a part of the surface of the plate 13, the container group G is moved onto the alignment plate 13 by sliding on the movable plate 13A.

Above the transport conveyor 12 and the alignment plate 13, a first transfer device 26 is arranged to divide the group of containers G on the transport conveyor 12 into two groups, front and rear, and move them onto the alignment plate 13, as will be described later. (See Figures 6-9). The first transfer device 26 has four pairs of first to fourth grippers 28A to 28D.

As will be described later, the first gripper (first transfer means) 28A divides a part of the container group G stacked at the stacking position A in the transport direction (X direction), that is, the first container group ( The second gripper (first transfer means) 28B moves the second container group (first article group) G1 to the first alignment position A1, and the second container group (second item group) G2 to the second alignment position A2. In this embodiment, the container group G is divided into a first container group G1 on the upstream side and a second container group G2 on the downstream side.

A third gripper (second transfer means) 28C moves the first container group G1, which has been moved to the first alignment position A1, to a third alignment position A3 on the alignment plate 13, and a fourth gripper (second transfer means) ) 28D moves the second container group G2, which has been moved to the second alignment position A2, to the fourth alignment position A4 on the alignment plate 13. As shown in FIG.

Further, on the side of the alignment plate 13 opposite to the transport conveyor 12, a discharge conveyor 15 for transporting the containers C in the Y direction orthogonal to the transport direction (X direction) of the transport conveyor 12 is arranged. 13 on the discharge conveyor 15 side, a second transfer device 30 for transferring the first and second container groups G1 and G2 arranged at the third and fourth alignment positions A3 and A4 onto the discharge conveyor 15 is provided. be done.

The second transfer device 30 includes container group moving mechanisms 30A and 30B that move the first and second container groups G1 and G2, respectively. The container group moving mechanisms 30A, 30B respectively include grippers 32A, 32B capable of holding the respective container groups G1, G2 in the Y direction. The grippers 32A and 32B are provided at the distal ends of rods 33A arranged along the X direction, respectively, and the base ends of the rods 33A are sliders of two X-direction actuators 33B arranged parallel along the X direction. , respectively. That is, each gripper 32A, 32B is reciprocated in the X direction by each drive motor 33C of the X direction actuator 33B.

The two X-direction actuators 33B are held at their base ends by one Y-direction actuator 33D arranged along the Y direction. That is, the grippers 32A and 32B can be integrally reciprocated in the Y direction by one Y-direction actuator 33D, and can be reciprocated in the X direction by two X-direction actuators 33B. The Y-direction actuator 33D integrally reciprocates the two X-direction actuators 33B in the Y direction by means of a drive motor 33E.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the transport conveyor 12 viewed from the upstream side, and shows a state in which the rear finger 18 is in contact with the container C at the rear of the container group G on the transport conveyor 12 .

The left and right rear fingers 18 are L-shaped with their tip ends bent toward the center of the conveyor 12, and are reciprocated in opposite directions in the width direction of the conveyor 12 by an air cylinder 22B. . At the position where the container group G is separated from the rear container C by the star wheel 14, the rear finger 18 is moved by the air cylinder 22B in a direction in which the tips thereof approach each other, and the container group G is moved to the rear surface of the rear container C. abutted. After the container group G is moved to the stacking position A by the rear finger moving mechanism 22, the rear finger 18 is retracted by the air cylinder 22B to a position where it does not interfere with the containers C on the transfer conveyor 12. By the mechanism 22, it is returned to the original position toward the star wheel 14 side (upstream side). A portion of the retracted rear finger 18 is drawn in dashed lines in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the transport conveyor 12 at the stacking position A as seen from the upstream side, and also shows the lifting mechanism 25 of the lifting guide 24 .

As shown in FIG. 4, the lift guides 24 are positioned along the sides of the containers C on the transport conveyor 12 and supported by support members 25A. In this embodiment, since the container groups G are arranged in two rows, the lift guides 24 are provided at three positions between the conveyer 12 and the containers C. As shown in FIG. The lifting mechanism 25 reciprocates the supporting member 25A up and down by driving the motor 25B. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the lift guide 24 is lifted and the container group G is transferred to the transfer section A. As shown in FIG. When the container group G is divided into the first container group G1 and the second container group G2 and transferred onto the stacking plate 13, the support member 25A is lowered by the lifting mechanism 25, and the three lifting guides 24 is retracted below the conveying surface of the belt conveyor 12A.

5 is a side view of the first transfer device 26 of the present embodiment as seen from the lower side of FIG. 1 (as seen in the Y direction), and FIG. 6 is a side view as seen from the upstream side (in the X direction). be.

In this embodiment, the first to fourth grippers 28A to 28D are held under the base 34 of the first transfer device 26. As shown in FIG. The base 34 can be vertically moved (Z direction) by a lifting mechanism 36 using a nut 36A and a ball screw 36B, and can be reciprocated in the width direction (Y direction) of the conveyor 12 by a base movement actuator 38. . Lifting mechanism 36 and base movement actuator 38 are driven by drive motors 36C and 38A, respectively.

7 is a plan view showing the arrangement of the first to fourth grippers 28A to 28D attached to the base 34, and FIG. 8 shows the configuration below the base 34 in FIG. 1 is a side view seen upstream from .

In this embodiment, each of the first to fourth grippers 28A to 28D consists of a pair of plate-like members that are opened and closed in the Y direction by the opening and closing cylinders 40, respectively. The opening and closing cylinders 40 of the first gripper 28A and the fourth gripper 28D are fixedly attached to the base 34, while the second gripper 28B and the third gripper 28C have Y-direction linear actuator 40A and X-direction linear actuator 40B, respectively. are attached to the base 34 via the respective. The Y-direction linear actuator 40A and the X-direction linear actuator 40B are driven by drive motors 41A and 41B, respectively.

The base 34 has, for example, a rectangular shape with four sides parallel to the XY directions, and the first gripper 28A is arranged at a position on the base 34 that is closest to the transport conveyor 12 on the upstream side. The second gripper 28B is arranged downstream of the first gripper 28A, and the third gripper 28C is arranged downstream of the first gripper 28A in the Y direction. Also, the fourth gripper 28D is arranged diagonally on the base 34 with respect to the first gripper 28A.

The second gripper 28B is reciprocated by a Y-direction linear motion actuator 40A from a position aligned in the X direction with the first gripper 28A (FIG. 7) to a position extending outward from the base 34 toward the transport conveyor 12 side. It is possible. On the other hand, the X-direction linear motion actuator 40B causes the third gripper 28C to reciprocate from the position aligned with the first gripper 28A in the Y direction (FIG. 7) to the position aligned with the fourth gripper 28D in the Y direction. It is possible.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, a movable plate 13A forming part of the alignment plate 13 can be swung around an axis 13C by an air cylinder 13B. When the container group G is sandwiched between the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18 and moved on the transport conveyor 12, the movable plate 13A is rotated around the shaft 13C and pushed downward, so that the container group G moves onto the transport conveyor 12. , is pushed up so as to constitute the plane of the alignment plate 13 .

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a configuration in which the first to fourth grippers 28A to 28D (representatively shown as gripper 28 in this drawing) grip the first and second container groups G1 and G2, respectively. As shown in FIG. 9, recesses 29 are formed on the inner side surfaces of the pair of grippers 28 to fit the containers C of each article group. to fix its position.

Next, referring to FIGS. 10 to 12, the container group G is separated on the transport conveyor 12, and the first and second container groups G1 and G2 are moved from the stacking position A to the first alignment position A1 and the second alignment position A2. The operation of moving to will be described.

FIG. 10(a) shows a state in which the container group G separated from the subsequent container C conveyed on the conveyer 12 is moved to the stacking position A by the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18. FIG.

In FIG. 10(a), the elevating guide 24 is raised, and the container group G is guided on both sides by the elevating guide 24 and supported by the front plate 16 and the pair of rear fingers 18 on the front and rear sides. The star wheel 14 rotates at a normal speed synchronized with the transport speed of the transport conveyor 12, and the rear containers C are transported on the transport conveyor 12 in a dense state. At this time, the movable plate 13A is retracted downward, and interference with the rear finger 18 is prevented.

In FIG. 10(b), the front plate 16 and rear fingers 18 are removed sideways from the transfer conveyor 12. In FIG. The head of the container group G abuts against the fixed stopper 21, and the continuously driven transfer conveyor 12 prevents the container group G from moving further downstream. In FIG. 10(c), the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18, which have been retracted from the transport conveyor 12, start to move upstream, and the first gripper 28A and the second gripper 28B move the container group G, respectively. moved upwards.

At this time, the base 34 of the first transfer device 26 is in a position raised by the elevating mechanism 36, and the first gripper 28A is moved to a position directly above the group of containers G on the transport conveyor 12 by the base movement actuator 38. It is moved to the transport conveyor 12 side. Also, the second gripper 28B is arranged in line with the first gripper 28A in the X direction by the Y-direction linear motion actuator 40A, and positioned directly above the container group G on the transport conveyor 12. FIG.

In FIG. 10(d), the lift guide 24 is lowered from the conveying surface of the conveyer 12, the base 34 is lowered by the lift mechanism 36, and the first gripper 28A grabs the first container group G1 on the upstream side of the container group G. A state in which the second gripper 28B grips the second container group G2 on the downstream side of the container group G is shown. At this time, the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18 are further moved upstream, and the movable plate 13A is raised to the same height as the stacking plate 13.

11(e), the movement of the base 34 of the first transfer device 26 in the Y direction by the base movement actuator 38 is started, and the Y direction linear motion actuator 40A moves the second gripper 28B toward the conveyor 12 side. and move. As a result, the first container group G1 held by the first gripper 28A and the second container group G2 held by the second gripper 28B are moved onto the stacking plate 13. As shown in FIG. Meanwhile, the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18 are also moved upstream.

In FIG. 11( f ), the front plate 16 is pushed out onto the transfer conveyor 12 while moving upstream together with the rear finger 18 . 11(g), the movement of the front plate 16 and rear finger 18 along the transport conveyor 12 is stopped and the front plate 16 is pushed completely onto the transport plate 12. In FIG. At this time, the front plate 16 is positioned slightly downstream of the top of the container C delivered from the star wheel 14, and the tip of the rear finger 18 is positioned at the position where the container C is delivered from the star wheel 14. At the same time, the rotation speed of the star wheel 14 is reduced based on the counting result, the speed at which the container C is delivered becomes slower than the transport speed of the transport conveyor 12, and the container group G already delivered from the star wheel 14 is transferred to the following container. separated from The star wheel 14 of this embodiment is controlled to discharge 10 containers C in 2.5 seconds. At the start of operation, the rotation is controlled so that the containers C in each row are sent out at the same speed as the transport conveyor 12, and when 10 containers C are recognized, one container C is discharged for 0.25 seconds, and the normal speed is reached. It is controlled to decelerate by about 20% from . In this way, by shortening the deceleration time of the container C and reducing the rate of deceleration, the influence of the inertial force on the container C during deceleration is minimized. During this time, the movement of the first and second container groups G1 and G2 to the alignment plate 13 by the first gripper 28A and the second gripper 28B is continued.

In FIG. 11(h), the leading edge of the separated container group G abuts against the front plate 16, and the rear fingers 18 on both sides are pushed onto the transfer conveyor 12, and the separated container group G is separated by the star wheel 14. In FIG. It abuts on the container C at the rear end. The rotation of the starwheel 14 is accelerated until the delivery speed becomes the same as the transport speed of the transport conveyor 12 . In this embodiment, in order to prevent the containers C from overturning due to sudden acceleration, the speed is increased to the normal speed over 2.25 seconds, which is the time required for the nine containers C to be discharged. Also, the first container group G1 moved by the first gripper 28A is moved to substantially the first alignment position A1, and the second container group G2 moved by the second gripper 28B is moved to substantially the second alignment position A2. be done. Also, the lift guide 24 is lifted to a position higher than the conveying surface of the conveyer 12 .

In FIG. 12(i), when the movable plate 13A is retracted, the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18 are moved downstream at a speed faster than the transport speed of the transport conveyor 12, and the separated container group G is approaching the upstream end of the stacking position A. In FIG. 12(j), the front plate 16 and the rear finger 18 are moved further downstream, and several rows of containers C on the front side of the container group G are moved between the lift guides 24. In FIG. Also, the first gripper 28A and the second gripper 28B are opened by the opening/closing cylinder 40, the first and second container groups G1 and G2 are released, and the first and second container groups G1 and G2 are moved to the first alignment position A1. , to the second alignment position A2. Thereafter, the base 34 is lifted by the lifting mechanism 36 and moved toward the conveyor 12 by the base movement actuator 38 until the first gripper 28A is positioned directly above the conveyor 12, as shown in FIG. be. At this time, the second gripper 28B is moved by the Y-direction linear motion actuator 40A to a position aligned with the first gripper 28A in the X-direction (right above the transport conveyor 12).

Next, referring to FIGS. 13 and 14, alignment processing of first container group G1 and second container group G2 and transfer processing to discharge conveyor 15 using first transfer device 26 and second transfer device 30. will be explained.

FIG. 13 shows a state in which the container group G is transported to the stacking position A, and the first and second container groups G1 and G2 of the container group G are gripped by the first and second grippers 28A and 28B. At this time, the base 34 has been moved to the transport conveyor 12 side. At this time, the third gripper 28C is arranged at a position aligned with the first gripper 28A in the Y direction, and grips the first container group G1 previously moved to the first alignment position A1 by the first gripper 28A. The gripper 28D grips the container group G2 previously moved to the second alignment position A2 by the second gripper 28B.

Further, the container group moving mechanism 30A of the second transfer device 30 moves the grippers 32A and 32B in the X direction by means of the X direction actuator 33B, and first moves the third and fourth alignments by means of the third and fourth grippers 28C and 28D. The first and second container groups G1 and G2 that have been moved to positions A3 and A4 are clamped, respectively.

Here, the first alignment position A1 and the second alignment position A2 are positions in which the first container group G1 and the second container group G2 of the container group G on the transport conveyor 12 are moved in the Y direction. The alignment position A1 is arranged farther from the transport conveyor 12 than the second alignment position A2. The second, fourth, and third alignment positions A2, A4, and A3 are arranged in this order in a row from the transport conveyor 12 side, and the fourth alignment position A4 transports more than the first alignment position A1. It is arranged at a position far from the conveyor 12 .

Next, as shown in FIG. 14, the grippers 32A and 32B of the second transfer device 30 are moved in the Y direction by the Y direction actuator 33D, and the container groups G1 and G2 held by the grippers 32A and 32B are discharged. They are moved onto the transport conveyor 15 while being aligned along the transport direction of the conveyor 15 . At the same time, the base 34 is moved in the Y direction by the base movement actuator 38, the second gripper 28B is moved in the direction of the transport conveyor 12 by the Y direction linear movement actuator 40A, and the third gripper 28C is moved in the X direction. It is moved in the X direction by the motion actuator 40B.

As a result, the first and second container groups G1 and G2 held by the first and second grippers 28A and 28B on the transport conveyor 12 in FIG. , A2, respectively, and gripped by the third and fourth grippers 28C, 28D, respectively, are moved to the third and fourth alignment positions A3, A4 on the alignment plate 13, respectively. be moved. Thereafter, by repeating the same process, the containers C conveyed in a predetermined row on the conveyer 12 are separated in the conveying direction into one container group G, and then the container group G is further divided into equal parts. The containers are separated into the first and second container groups G1 and G2, moved in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, and discharged while aligned in the intersecting direction.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the stacked container group is separated into the first and second container groups in the conveying direction by the first and second grippers, and the first and second container groups are positioned in the direction intersecting the conveying direction. Third and fourth alignment positions where the first and second container groups moved to the first and second alignment positions are aligned in the cross direction by third and fourth grippers while moving to the first and second alignment positions , the containers can be aligned in a direction transverse to the original conveying direction with high throughput.

In this embodiment, one container group accumulated at the accumulation position of the transport conveyor is separated into two container groups and aligned in the direction intersecting the conveying direction. It is also possible to divide into three or more container groups and align them. Also, the positions of the first to fourth alignment positions can be reversed in the conveying direction.

10 Article Group Separating and Accumulating Device 12 Conveyor 13 Alignment Plate (Alignment Section)
14 star wheel (braking means)
16 front plate (first engaging member)
18 rear finger (second engaging member)
20 front plate moving mechanism 22 rear finger moving mechanism 26 first transfer device 28A, 28B first and second grippers (first transfer means)
28C, 28D third and fourth grippers (second transfer means)
A Accumulation position A1 to A4 1st to 4th alignment position C Container (goods)
G Container Group (Goods Group)
G1, G2 1st and 2nd container group (goods group)

Claims (1)

a conveying conveyor for conveying articles;
an aligning unit arranged on the side of the transport conveyor;
A transport means for transporting a predetermined number of articles stacked on the transport conveyor to the aligning unit,
The transfer means moves the first and second article groups, which are divided in the conveying direction, in a direction crossing the conveying direction for each of the first and second article groups divided in the conveying direction, and moves the respective first and second article groups of the aligning section. a first transfer means for transferring the first article group transferred to the first aligning position to a third arranging position; and a second article group transferring to the second aligning position. 4 a second transfer means for transferring to the alignment position,
The second, fourth, and third alignment positions are arranged in this order in a row from the transport conveyor side in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, and the first alignment position is positioned closer to the second alignment position than the second alignment position. arranged far from the conveying conveyor, the fourth alignment position being arranged at a position farther from the conveying conveyor than the first alignment position;
An article group transfer characterized in that the first and second article groups are aligned in a direction crossing the conveying direction at the third and fourth alignment positions by driving the first and second transfer means. alignment device.

Images