JPH1191715A - Spherical crop packaging equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [PROBLEMS] To reduce the labor of workers working in packaging facilities for spherical crops. SOLUTION: A packaging device 1 for packaging spherical agricultural products and a conveyor 5 for feeding the spherical agricultural products to the packaging device 1 in a state where the spherical agricultural products are held in an upside-down posture by a holding unit 19 are provided on a side farther than the crop extracting position of the conveyor 5. Is provided with a cutting device 11 for cutting the root of the spherical crop held in the upside down position by the holding section 19 in the transport path of.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a packaging facility for spherical crops.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a packaging facility for spherical crops, for example, as in a packaging facility for lettuce, an operator removes damaged leaves outside the spherical crop and removes the root side before packing the spherical crops with a packaging device. He was cutting with a kitchen knife.

[0003]

However, the work of cutting the roots of the spherical crops is troublesome, and since such packaging equipment usually processes a large number of spherical crops, the burden on the operator is high. Was big.

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to reduce the labor of an operator working in a packaging facility for spherical crops.

[0005]

The constitution, operation and effect of the invention according to claim 1 are as follows. (Configuration) A packaging device for packaging spherical crops, and a conveyor that sends the spherical crops to the packaging device side while holding the spherical crops in an upside down position by a holding unit, and in a transport path on a side better than the crop takeout position of the conveyor. Further, there is provided a cutting device for cutting the root of the spherical crop held in the upside down position by the holding section.

[Operation] The cutting device cuts the root of the spherical crop held in the upside down position by the holding portion of the conveyor in a transport path that is better than the crop take-out position of the conveyor, and cuts the spherical crop after the cutting. The conveyor sends it to the packaging device side.

[Effect] Therefore, since the cutting device cuts the root of the spherical crop, the cutting work by the operator becomes unnecessary, and the labor of the worker can be reduced.

The construction, operation and effect of the invention according to claim 2 are as follows. [Structure] In the invention according to claim 1, the cutting device is configured such that the cutting blade is supported on a support member such that a vertical position of the cutting blade can be adjusted with respect to a conveyance surface of the conveyor, and the holding unit is in an inverted posture. Providing a first position sensor for detecting the position of the upper end of the held spherical crop in the vertical direction,
Control means is provided for driving the cutting blade up and down and for positioning the cutting blade at a cutting action position based on the detection information of the first position sensor.

[Operation] In addition to the same operation as the operation according to the first aspect, the following operation can be obtained. When the first position sensor detects the position of the upper end of the spherical crop held in the upside down position by the holding unit in the up-down direction, the cutting blade is set to the cutting action position. Needless to say, the cutting blade can be positioned at a cutting action position suitable for the size of each spherical crop, even if the crop has a low height or a high height.

[Effect] Therefore, in addition to the same effect as the effect of the configuration of the first aspect, in the case of a spherical crop having a short height, for example, the cutting blade is positioned higher than the upper end of the spherical crop. In the case of a tall spherical crop, for example, the cutting blade cuts the root of the leaf below the root of the spherical crop in an upside down position. Can now be avoided.

The construction, operation and effect of the invention according to claim 3 are as follows. [Structure] In the invention according to claim 2, the first position sensor and the cutting blade are arranged so as to be capable of changing the vertical position integrally with the cutting blade being positioned at the same position or substantially the same position in the vertical direction, and A first position sensor configured to detect a vertical position of an upper end of the spherical crop held in an upside down position by the holding unit by being located at the same position in the vertical direction as an upper end of the spherical crop; Means are
When the first position sensor detects the position of the upper end of the spherical crop in the vertical direction, the cutting blade is lowered integrally with the first position sensor by a set amount to be positioned at the cutting action position. .

[Operation] In addition to the same operation as the operation according to the second aspect, the following operation can be obtained. When the first position sensor detects the vertical position of the upper end of the spherical crop held by the holding unit of the conveyor in the upside down position at the same position in the vertical direction as the upper end of the spherical crop, the first position sensor detects the first position. The cutting blade positioned at the same position or substantially the same position in the vertical direction as the sensor is lowered by a set amount integrally with the first position sensor and positioned at the cutting action position.

That is, after the first position sensor is located at the same position in the vertical direction as the upper end of the spherical crop, the cutting blade located at the same position or almost the same position in the vertical direction as the first position sensor is lowered by the set amount. Therefore, the cutting blade can be reliably positioned below the upper end of the spherical crop.

Further, since the first position sensor is moved up and down integrally with the cutting blade, the elevation control is simplified as compared with the case where the first position sensor is moved up and down separately.

The above-mentioned sensors include, for example, an optical sensor and an ultrasonic sensor. By constituting the first position sensor with such a sensor, the position of the upper end of the spherical crop in the vertical direction can be accurately determined. Can be detected without damaging spherical crops.

[Effect] Therefore, in addition to the same effect as the effect of the second aspect, the cutting blade can be more accurately positioned at the cutting action position, and the commercial value of the spherical crop can be obtained. Of the control can be prevented, and the cost required for the control can be reduced.

The structure, operation and effect of the invention according to claim 4 are as follows. [Configuration] In the invention according to claim 3, a second position sensor that detects that the spherical crop held in the upside down position by the holding portion is located at a set position on the upper side in the transport direction of the cutting blade, and A third position sensor for detecting that the cutting blade is located at a set position on the lower side in the transport direction with respect to the cutting blade, wherein the control means sets the cutting blade and the first position sensor at a retreat position above the spherical crop; In the state
When the second position sensor detects that the spherical crop is located at the set position on the upper side in the transport direction, the cutting blade and the first position sensor are started to descend based on the detection information, and the spherical crop is started. When the third position sensor detects that the cutting blade is located at a set position on the lower side in the transport direction, the cutting blade and the first position sensor are started to move up to the retreat position side.

[Operation] In addition to the same operation as the operation according to the third aspect, the following operation can be obtained. [B] With the cutting blade and the first position sensor positioned at the retreat position above the spherical crop, the spherical crop held in the upside down position by the holding unit is set at the upper side in the transport direction of the cutting blade. Is detected by the second position sensor, the cutting blade and the first position sensor start lowering. Then, the cutting blade located at the cutting action position as described above cuts the root of the spherical crop in the upside-down posture exceeding the set position, and thereafter, the spherical crop in the upside-down posture is on the lower side in the transport direction of the cutting blade. Is detected by the third position sensor, the cutting blade and the first position sensor begin to move upward to the retreat position above the spherical crop.

[B] For example, in a state where the cutting blades are arranged at a lower position than the first position sensor, they can be integrally adjusted so as to be able to change the vertical position, and the cutting blades that cut the spherical crop are moved to the cutting position. When the second position sensor detects that the subsequent spherical vegetable is located at the set position on the upper side in the transport direction of the cutting blade, the first position sensor starts moving up and down integrally with the cutting blade, When the position sensor detects the upper end of the spherical crop, the ascent / descent is stopped, and at that position, the cutting blade cuts the root of the subsequent spherical crop, and the cutting action position of the cutting blade with respect to the subsequent spherical crop. Is higher than the cutting action position of the cutting blade with respect to the preceding spherical crop (ie, when the cutting blade is raised and positioned at the cutting action position based on the detection result of the second position sensor), the second place If the sensor cannot detect the position, the spherical crop is sent to the cutting blade side before the cutting blade starts rising, and the subsequent spherical crop is moved to the root portion of the leaf below the target position. However, in the configuration of claim 4, the cutting blade rises to the retreat position above the spherical crop every time the spherical crop is cut. Even if a trouble in which the position sensor cannot detect the position occurs, there is no problem that the subsequent spherical crop is cut off at the base of the leaf below the target position and the leaf is cut off as described above.

[C] When the second position sensor detects that the spherical crop is located at the set position on the upper side in the transport direction, the cutting blade and the first position sensor are started to descend based on the detection information, When the third position sensor detects that the spherical crop is located at the set position on the lower side in the transport direction, the cutting blade and the first position sensor start moving upward to the retreat position side. Therefore, it is not necessary to reduce the feed speed of the conveyor or to stop and stop the conveyor until the cutting blade is completely moved up and down.

[Effect] Therefore, according to the structure of claim 4, in addition to the same effect as the effect of the structure of claim 3, it is impossible to ship due to the above-mentioned operations [1] and [2]. The production of spherical crops could be prevented, and the working efficiency could be improved by the above-mentioned effects (a) and (c).

The structure, operation and effect of the invention according to claim 5 are as follows. [Structure] In the invention according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, and 4, the plant liquid from the cut surface of the spherical crop is provided in a conveyor path between the crop removal position and the cutting device. There is provided a wiping device for wiping.

[Operation] In addition to the same effect as the effect of any one of the first, second, third and fourth aspects, the following operation can be obtained. If the root of a spherical crop is left cut, the cut surface will be used as the plant fluid (a generic term for liquids containing tissue fluid, water, nutrients, etc., which are sent to the tissue tissues, conduits, and sieve tubes contained in the cell tissue destroyed by cutting). )
Emerges, and the components contained in the plant fluid are deteriorated with the passage of time and the color of the cut surface is darkened, resulting in a loss of freshness. Therefore, it is necessary to wipe off the plant fluid. According to this, since the wiping is performed by the wiping device on the transport path of the conveyor between the crop extracting position on the conveyor and the cutting device, the operator does not need to wipe the plant liquid.

[Effects] Therefore, in addition to the same effects as the effects of any one of the first, second, third, and fourth aspects, the labor of the operator can be further reduced.

[0025]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, a lettuce packaging device 1 (abbreviated as a packaging device) and a lettuce supply device 2 for supplying lettuce (corresponding to spherical crops) to the packaging device 1 are mounted on the floor independently of each other. In addition, a control device 3 (corresponding to control means) for controlling both devices 1 and 2 is provided to constitute a lettuce packaging facility.

The packaging apparatus 1 receives the lettuce from the lettuce slot 14 formed in the lettuce receiving section 8 at the center of the upper surface, wraps it with a transparent wrapping sheet 15, and finishes the wrapping through an opening 17 provided on one side. It is a device for discharging lettuce.

The lettuce supply device 2 is provided with a gate-shaped main frame 4 made of a round pipe that stands upright in front of the front wall of the packaging device 1 and is higher than the packaging device 1. The conveying end side of the belt conveyor 5 which feeds the paper to the packaging device 1 side in the lateral direction is connected to the packaging device 2 of the main frame 4.
And a leg 5A is provided on the conveyor start end side of the belt conveyor 5 and a predetermined take-out position on the forward path of the belt conveyor 5 is provided. A robot hand 9 provided on the side of the main frame 4 on the side of the packaging device 1 is provided with a robot hand 9 for gripping the lettuce sent to A with a plurality of finger portions 16 and taking out the same, and sending it to the lettuce receiving portion 8 of the packaging device 1. It is configured to be supported by a lateral support frame 10 (see FIG. 8).

The belt conveyor 5 is provided with a plurality of lettuce support portions 19 (corresponding to holding portions) on the transfer surface at a constant pitch in the transfer direction. This lettuce support portion 19 is configured as shown in FIG. As described above, a plurality of lettuce receiving projections 20 are dispersedly disposed around the longitudinal axis Q via the circular seat plate 21 on the transfer surface so that the lettuce can be fitted in an inverted posture.
The lettuce receiving protrusion 20 is formed in a hollow shape by a rubber material, and the lettuce receiving surface portion 22 on the upper end side is
The upper surface is formed on an inclined surface positioned closer to the back side, and both side surfaces 23 of the lettuce receiving projection 20 extending in the circumferential direction around the longitudinal axis Q are formed on the peripheral portions of the both side surfaces 23 by the rubber material. The side portion 23a is opened so as to remain. The circular seat plate 21 is also made of a rubber material, and is integrally formed with the lettuce receiving projection 20. At the center of the circular seat plate 21, an annular projection 24 for supporting the head of the lettuce is formed integrally. Affixed to the transport surface. The belt conveyor 5 is of an intermittent operation type that repeats an operation of stopping by a set time after moving by one pitch of the constant pitch.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 6, a cutting device for cutting the root of the lettuce held in an upside-down posture by the lettuce support portion 19 in the transport path on the upper side of the take-out position A of the belt conveyor 5. The cutting device 11 is provided on a pair of support walls 13 (corresponding to support members) standing upright from both ends in the width direction of the transport frame 12 of the belt conveyor 5 by a pair of first electric motors M1. A pair of disc-shaped cutting blades 18 each of which is driven and rotated slightly around the vertical axis O in a slightly lowered position together with the first electric motor M1 is supported via a lifting mechanism 28 so as to be capable of changing the vertical position. I have. Then, a horizontally long first optical sensor 29 (corresponding to a first position sensor) for detecting the vertical position of the upper end of the lettuce held upside down by the lettuce support portion 19 is provided. The blade 18 is driven up and down, and the cutting blade 18 is stopped at the cutting action position based on the detection information of the first optical sensor 29.

The elevating mechanism 28 includes a first electric motor M1
The vertical guide cylinder 37 at one end in the width direction of the horizontal cutting blade support plate 36 that supports and connects the cutting blade 18 and the cutting blade 18 and the horizontal notch hole 38 at the other end are respectively set up from both ends in the width direction of the transport frame 12. A long hole along the transport direction of a projecting portion 40 formed so as to be individually slidably and vertically slidably fitted on a pair of guide rods 39 provided and formed on the outer peripheral portion of the vertical guide cylinder 37 so as to project downward in the transport direction. 41, the second electric motor M2
Crank pin 4 of crank mechanism 42 driven by
3 is inserted.

A horizontal sensor support plate 44 supporting and connecting the first optical sensor 29 is connected to the cutting blade support plate 36 so that the first optical sensor 29 and the cutting blade 18 are positioned at the same position in the vertical direction. The first optical sensor 29 is configured so that the vertical position can be changed and adjusted in an integrated manner in the state where the
9 to detect the vertical position of the upper end of the lettuce held in an upside-down posture by being located at the same position in the vertical direction as the upper end of the lettuce. Detects the position of the upper end of the lettuce in the vertical direction, the cutting blade 18 is moved to the first optical sensor 29.
And is lowered by a set amount to be positioned at the cutting action position.

FIGS. 2, 5 (A), 5 (B), 6 (A),
As shown in (b), the second optical sensor 45 for detecting that the lettuce held in the upside down position by the lettuce support 19 is located at the set position B on the upper side in the transport direction of the cutting blade 18.
(Corresponding to a second position sensor), and a third optical sensor 46 (corresponding to a third position sensor) for detecting that it is located at a set position C on the lower side in the transport direction with respect to the cutting blade 18. In the state where the cutting blade 18 and the first optical sensor 29 are located at the retreat position above the lettuce, the second optical sensor 45 detects that the lettuce is located at the set position B on the upstream side in the transport direction. Then, based on the detection information, the cutting blade 18 and the first optical sensor 29 are started to descend, and the third optical sensor 46 detects that the lettuce has been cut and is located at the set position C on the lower side in the transport direction. Then, the cutting blade 18 and the first
The optical sensor 29 is configured to start moving upward to the retreat position side. The cutting of the lettuce is performed while the lettuce is conveyed by the belt conveyor 5.

As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 7 (a), (b), a pair of lettuce is provided in the transport path of the belt conveyor 5 between the lettuce take-out position A and the cutting device 11. A wiping device 25 for removing the vegetable liquid from the cut surfaces of the pair of lettuce separately supported by the support member 19 is provided upright on the conveyor frame 12 of the belt conveyor 5 so as to straddle the belt conveyor 5.

The wiping device 25 is capable of changing the vertical position between an operating position where the plant liquid wiping portion 47 contacts the cut surface of the lettuce and a non-operating position retracted upward from the operating position. When the plant liquid wiping unit 47 reaches the non-operating position, the interlocking state between the third electric motor M3 and the plant liquid wiping unit 47 is released. The plant liquid wiping unit 47 and the third electric motor M3 are configured so as to cooperate with each other so as to descend from the non-operation position to the operation position by its own weight.

More specifically, the arm portions 27A of the pair of swing arms 27 which are respectively supported on the support frame 26 so as to be able to freely swing up and down around the common first horizontal axis X along the first horizontal axis X. Is provided with a vegetable liquid wiping portion 47, and the rocking arm 27 is rockingly driven on the rocking base end side of the rocking arm 27, so that the cut surfaces of the pair of lettuce are hit by the pair of vegetable liquid wiping portions separately. The swing drive mechanism 30 is provided.

To constitute the swing drive mechanism 30, the pair of swing arms 27 extend from the first horizontal axis X to the opposite side of the swing end from the base end. Crank pin 31 which receives portion 27B in a state where it is sandwiched and contacted by these two extended ends to prevent free swinging down of both swinging arms 27, and both swinging arms 2 in the sandwiching and contacting state.
7 so that the crank pin 31 rises and swings alternately.
A crank mechanism 33 for rotating around a second horizontal axis Y along the first horizontal axis X via a third electric motor M3 and a crank arm 32 is provided, and both extended ends 27B abut against the crank pins 31. A spring 34 that is urged to suppress the occurrence of a hit between them is provided over both swing arms 27. FIGS. 7A and 7B show the wiping device 25 during the wiping operation. In addition, the structure in which the pair of swing arms 27 are supported by the support frame 26 so as to be able to freely swing up and down, and the swing drive mechanism 30 allow the plant liquid wiping unit 47 to contact the cut surface. The up-and-down means is vertically movable from the operating position to a non-operating position retracted upward.

[Alternative Embodiment] The first position sensor 29
Is constituted by an image processing type sensor provided on the upstream side in the transport direction with respect to the cutting device 11, and is configured to position the cutting blade 18 at a cutting action position based on detection information of this sensor. Is also good.

The lifting mechanism 28 may be of a screw feed type.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a lettuce packaging facility.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a cutting device and a wiping device.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a cutting device and a wiping device.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a cutting device.

FIG. 5 (a) A side view showing a state before cutting a spherical vegetable by a cutting device. (B) A side view showing a state cutting a spherical vegetable by a cutting device.

FIG. 6 (a) A plan view showing a state before cutting a spherical vegetable by a cutting device. (B) A plan view showing a state where a spherical vegetable is cut by a cutting device.

FIG. 7A shows a wiping operation of the wiping device. FIG. 7B shows a wiping operation of the wiping device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the flow of spherical vegetables to the packaging device side.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Packaging device 3 Control means 5 Conveyor 11 Cutting device 13 Support member 18 Cutting blade 19 Holding part 25 Wiping device 29 1st position sensor 45 2nd position sensor 46 3rd position sensor A Take-out position B, C setting position

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A packaging device for packaging spherical crops, and a conveyor for feeding the spherical crops to the packaging device in a state where the crops are held in an upside down position by a holding unit, wherein the conveyor is located at a position above the crop taking-out position of the conveyor. Spherical crop packaging equipment provided with a cutting device for cutting the root of the spherical crop held in an upside down position by the holding unit in the path. 2. The cutting device according to claim 1, wherein the cutting blade is configured to be supported by a supporting member such that a vertical position of the cutting blade is adjustable with respect to a conveying surface of the conveyor, and the holding unit is configured to hold the spherical crop in an inverted posture. Providing a first position sensor for detecting the position of the upper end in the vertical direction, driving the cutting blade up and down,
2. A packaging facility for spherical crops according to claim 1, further comprising control means for positioning the cropping position at the cutting action position based on the detection information of the first position sensor. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first position sensor and said cutting blade are integrally and vertically adjustable in a state in which said first position sensor and said cutting blade are positioned at the same position or substantially the same position in the vertical direction. The position in the upper one direction of the upper end of the spherical crop held in the inverted posture by the holding unit is detected by being located at the same position in the vertical direction as the upper end of the spherical crop, and the control means is configured to detect the When the one position sensor detects the vertical position of the upper end of the spherical crop, the cutting blade is lowered integrally with the first position sensor by a set amount to be positioned at the cutting action position. 2. A packaging facility for spherical crops according to 2. 4. A second position sensor for detecting that the spherical crop held in the upside down position by the holding portion is located at a set position on the upper side in the conveying direction of the cutting blade, and a conveying direction more than the cutting blade. A third position sensor for detecting that the cutting blade is located at a lower set position, wherein the control unit is configured to position the cutting blade and the first position sensor at a retracted position above the spherical crop; When the second position sensor detects that the spherical crop is located at the set position on the upper side in the transport direction, the cutting blade and the first position sensor are started to descend based on the detection information, When the third position sensor detects that the crop is located at the set position on the lower side in the transport direction, the cutting blade and the first position sensor are configured to start rising to the retreat position side. 3 The packaging equipment for spherical crops described in the above. 5. A wiping device for wiping vegetation liquid from a cut surface of said spherical crop is provided in a conveyor path between said crop taking position and said cutting device. The packaging equipment for spherical crops according to any one of the above.