JP2005289462A - Packaged status detecting apparatus for objects packaged - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a packaged status detecting apparatus for objects packaged, which is capable of determining defective objects by accurately detecting the packaged status of the objects packaged. <P>SOLUTION: The packaged status detecting apparatus for objects packaged detects the packaged status of the objects encased in packages and is provided with a conveying means 2 that conveys the packages, a thickness detecting means 4 that detects changes in thickness of the packages conveyed, and a status determining means 10 that determines the packaged status of the packaged objects from the results of detection by the thickness detecting means 4. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a packaging state detection device for an article to be packaged.

  Conventionally, automatic packaging apparatuses have been used to efficiently package various products. In this automatic packaging device, the articles to be packaged conveyed at a predetermined interval by a conveyor or the like are sequentially inserted into the cylindrical film, and the end of the cylindrical film is sealed and cut by the heat seal mechanism, and sent to the next process. It is configured to be.

  When packaging using such an automatic packaging apparatus is not correctly inserted into the tubular film, the end sealer may accidentally bite the packaged product and generate defective products. For this reason, the apparatus which detects the biting of a to-be-packaged object has been developed conventionally.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a pressing member that is integrally displaced with a heat seal mechanism, a contact-type displacement sensor that contacts the pressing member and measures the thickness of a heat-welded portion of a package, and the contact type There is disclosed a biting detection device including biting determination means for determining whether or not a packaged item is bitten based on a detection signal of a displacement sensor. In this biting detection device, when the biting determination means detects that the thickness of the heat welded portion is larger than a predetermined value, the removal device is activated and defective products are discharged.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-612

  However, the conventional biting detection device described above is configured to measure the thickness dimension of the heat-welded portion at the same time as the heat-welding by the heat-seal mechanism, so that an inspection is required in the post-heat-welding process. There was a problem that it was not possible to cope with the case.

  In addition to the above-mentioned biting of the package, there are cases where there is no package or there are more packages than the predetermined quantity as the cause of defective products due to the abnormal packaging condition of the package. However, since the conventional bite detection device described above can only check whether the packaged item is bitten or not, there is still room for improvement in this respect.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a packaging state detection device for a packaged object that can accurately detect the packaging state of the packaged object and determine a defective product.

  The object of the present invention is an apparatus for detecting a packaging state of an article to be packaged contained in a package, and a thickness detecting unit for detecting a change in the thickness of the package to be conveyed and a conveying means for conveying the package. This is achieved by a packaging state detection device for a packaged object comprising means and a state determination unit for determining the packaging state of the packaged object based on the detection result of the thickness detection means.

  In this packaging state detection device, the conveyance means has a conveyance surface on which the package is placed, and further includes a pressing roller that rotates in the conveyance direction while pressing the package on the conveyance surface. It is preferable that the thickness detection means detects the thickness of the package on the downstream side in the transport direction from the pressing roller.

  Further, the pressing portion of the pressing roller may be divided along the conveying surface in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction, and the thickness detecting unit may be interposed between the divided pressing portions.

  Moreover, the said state determination means can determine the packaging state of a to-be-packaged object based on the state determination time when the output signal of the said thickness detection means exceeds the preset signal level.

  Further, by further providing a package detection means for detecting the package, the state determination means captures the output signal of the thickness detection means after the package detection means detects the end of the package, The packaging state of the package can be determined.

  Further, by further comprising a transport distance detection means for detecting the transport distance of the transport means, the state determination means outputs the output signal of the thickness detection means based on the detection result of the transport distance detection means. It can convert so that it may respond to the thickness change of, and can determine the packaging state of a to-be-packaged object.

  According to the packaged state detection apparatus for a packaged product according to the present invention, it is possible to accurately detect the packaged state of the packaged product and determine a defective product.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG.1 and FIG.2 is the side view and top view which show schematic structure of the packaging state detection apparatus of the to-be-packaged item which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the packaging state detection device includes a conveyor 2 that is a means for transporting the package, a thickness detection sensor 4 that detects a change in the thickness of the package that is being transported, and a package that is being transported. A packaging body detection sensor 6, a pressing roller 8 that presses the packaging body, a state determination unit 10 that determines the packaging state of the packaged object accommodated in the package, and the packaging state of the packaged object is not normal. The removal apparatus 12 which removes the package determined to be from the conveyor 2 is provided.

  The conveyor 2 is a belt conveyor in which an endless conveyance belt 23 is wound around a driving roller 21 and a driven roller 22, and the driving roller 21 receives a rotational force from a driving motor 24 via a transmission belt 25. Driven by. A rotary encoder 26 (for example, “E6C2-CWZ6C” manufactured by OMRON Corporation) is attached to the rotation shaft of the drive roller 21, and a pulse corresponding to the rotation angle of the drive roller 21 is output from the rotary encoder 26. Based on this output pulse, the transport distance of the conveyor 2 can be detected.

  The thickness detection sensor 4 is a thickness detection means for detecting the thickness of the package to be conveyed. In this embodiment, a contact displacement sensor (for example, “AT3-004” manufactured by Keyence Corporation) is used as a sensor head. 4a is arranged so as to face vertically downward. The thickness detection sensor 4 may be a non-contact type displacement sensor such as an optical type or an ultrasonic type in addition to the contact type displacement sensor.

  The package detection sensor 6 is a package detection means for detecting a package to be conveyed. In the present embodiment, the package detection sensor 6 is a laser sensor that can be detected from a position separated from the package (for example, “manufactured by Keyence Corporation” LV-H32 "). As the package detection sensor 6, a photoelectric sensor, a proximity sensor, or the like can be used in addition to the laser sensor.

  The pressing roller 8 is disposed in a state of being close to the upper part of the conveyor 2 so that the pressing portions 8 a and 8 b provided on both sides press the packaging body against the transport surface of the conveyor 2 by its own weight. The pressing roller 8 is connected to a driving motor (not shown) and is configured to be rotationally driven in the conveying direction of the conveyor 2. By synchronizing with the driving motor 24 of the conveyor 2, the pressing roller 8 and the conveyor 2 are configured. The package sandwiched between the two is conveyed without being slipped while being pressed. The central portion 8c of the pressing roller 8 has a smaller diameter than the pressing portions 8a and 8b. The pressing roller 8 does not necessarily need to be driven by a drive motor (not shown), and may be supported rotatably by contact with the conveyor 2.

  The thickness detection sensor 4 and the package detection sensor 6 are arranged so as to detect the center in the width direction of the conveyor 2 on the downstream side in the transport direction from the pressing roller 8. The thickness detection sensor 4 is disposed in the vicinity of the central portion 8c of the pressing roller 8 so as to be interposed between the pressing portions 8a and 8b.

  The state determination unit 10 receives the pulse output from the rotary encoder 26 and the detection signals of the thickness detection sensor 4 and the packaging body detection sensor 6, and based on these, determines the packaging state of the package and removes it. The operation of the means 12 is controlled. A specific method for determining the packaging state in the state determination unit 10 will be described later.

  The removal device 12 includes an air discharge portion 121 disposed along the side edge of the conveyor 2 on the downstream side in the transport direction from the detection position of the thickness detection sensor 4 and the package detection sensor 6, and a supply pipe 122 is provided. To a compressed air supply (not shown). An opening / closing valve 123 is interposed in the supply pipe 122, and the supply of air from the air discharge unit 121 can be controlled by opening / closing the opening / closing valve 123.

  Next, the operation of the packaging state detection apparatus according to the present embodiment described above will be described by taking, as an example, detection of the packaging state of an object to be packaged in which a sheet-like product is folded.

  The package body in which the articles to be packaged are conveyed is conveyed from the driven roller 22 side toward the pressing roller 8 by the conveyor 2, and both sides are pressed by the pressing portions 8a and 8b, and then the thickness detection sensor 4 follows the conveying direction. A change in thickness is detected. When the thickness of the package is thin, the package itself may be warped, which may adversely affect the thickness detection accuracy by the thickness detection sensor 4, but the thickness detection sensor as in this embodiment. By pressing the package with the pressing roller 8 before the detection by 4, the warp generated in the package is eliminated, and the thickness of the package can be measured with high accuracy. In particular, in this embodiment, since the thickness detection sensor 4 is interposed between the pressing portions 8a and 8b located on both sides of the pressing roller 8, the thickness of the package immediately after being pressed by the pressing roller 8 is determined. It can detect and can improve measurement accuracy more. Moreover, the position and attitude | position of the package body on the conveyor 2 can also be hold | maintained in a desired state by the press of the press roller 8. FIG.

  The thickness detection sensor 4 outputs a voltage signal corresponding to the change in the thickness of the package. This voltage signal is proportional to the actual thickness. For example, a voltage signal of 1V corresponds to a thickness of 2 mm. An example of the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 when the packaging state of the package is normal is shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 3, the waveform portion where the voltage signal is 0 V corresponds to the transport surface of the conveyor 2, and the subsequent rising position corresponds to one end portion of the package. The voltage signal becomes substantially constant after rising to around 1 V, and this waveform portion corresponds to the package. The position where the voltage signal decreases and becomes 0 V again corresponds to the other end of the package. Accordingly, when an appropriate signal level is set as the reference voltage so that the waveform portion corresponding to the package is cut off (for example, 0.35 V), the time S1 when the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 exceeds the reference voltage is As long as the packaging state of the package is normal, it is substantially constant for the same product.

  On the other hand, when the article to be packaged bites at the heat fusion part, the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 has a waveform as shown in FIG. 4, for example. That is, since the thickness is larger than that in the normal packaging state on the other end side of the package body in which the packaged object is bitten, the falling of the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 tends to be delayed. It is in. Therefore, the time S2 when the output signal of the detection sensor 4 exceeds the reference voltage when biting occurs is longer than the time S1 when the output signal of the detection sensor 4 exceeds the reference voltage in a normal packaging state.

  Further, when the packaged item is packaged without being inserted by mistake, the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 has a waveform shown in FIG. 5, for example. That is, since there is no packaged item in the package, the thickness hardly changes and the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 does not exceed the reference voltage.

  From the above, the state determination unit 10 extracts a state determination time that is a time during which the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 exceeds a preset reference voltage (signal level), and the state determination time is within a predetermined range. While a case is determined as a normal packaging state, a case outside the predetermined range is determined as a defective product such as biting or absence of an article to be packaged. In addition, if many items to be packaged are inserted by mistake, the thickness will be larger than in the normal packaged state, so the state judgment time will be longer, and if the item to be packaged is placed sideways or diagonally As a result, the waveform of the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 is different from that in the normal packaging state, so that the state determination time is also out of the predetermined range. Therefore, the state determination part 10 can determine correctly also about the defect of these packaging states.

  Although the determination of the packaging state of the package can be performed based only on the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 as described above, the package can be detected by the package detection sensor 6 as in this embodiment. In this case, since the packaging body detection sensor 6 can function as a synchronization sensor and the packaging body detection sensor 6 detects the end of the packaging body, it can start capturing the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4. The determination accuracy in the determination unit 10 can be further increased. The detection of the package by the package detection sensor 6 is effective when it is difficult to detect the package by the thickness detection sensor 4 because the thickness of the package itself is thin.

  In this embodiment, since the rotary encoder 26 can function as a transport distance detection unit of the package, the output of the rotary encoder 26 can be obtained even when the rotational speed of the drive motor 24 of the conveyor 2 fluctuates. Based on the pulse, the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 can be converted to correspond to the actual thickness change of the package. Therefore, the determination accuracy can be further improved by the state determination unit 10 determining the packaging state based on the output signal thus converted.

  If the state determination unit 10 determines that the packaging state of the packaged item is defective, the state determination unit 10 opens the on-off valve 123 and blows air on the package to remove it from the conveyor 2. As a result, the packaging body supplied from the drive roller 21 side of the conveyor 2 is only the packaging body in which the packaging state of the article to be packaged is determined to be normal by the state determination unit 10.

  As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was explained in full detail, the specific aspect of this invention is not limited to the said embodiment. For example, in the present embodiment, the pressing roller 8 includes pressing portions 8a and 8b on both sides, and the pressing portions 8a and 8b are configured to press both sides of the package. However, a normal roller is used. The entire package may be pressed, or only a part such as one side of the package may be pressed. Further, when the thickness of the packaged item is large to some extent, the configuration may be such that the pressing roller 8 is not provided.

  In the present embodiment, the packaging state of the package is determined based on the state determination time when the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 exceeds a preset signal level. The method is not necessarily limited to this. For example, when the rising portion of the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 and / or the time of the rising portion is within a predetermined range, it is determined as a normal packaging state, and when it is out of the predetermined range, it is determined as a defective product. It may be. In addition to the above-described reference voltage setting, the upper limit voltage may be set to a voltage signal (eg, 1.2 V) higher than the output signal corresponding to the package in a normal packaging state. When the output signal of the thickness detection sensor 4 exceeds the upper limit voltage, the unit 10 may determine that the article to be packaged is a defective product that is bent or excessively inserted.

  In the present embodiment, the removing means 12 is configured to blow out defective products by the exhaust air. However, when the package is somewhat heavy, the removing means 12 is configured to use a pusher, a rotating arm, or the like. Defective products may be removed from the conveyor 2 by physical contact between these and the package.

  Moreover, in this embodiment, although the thickness detection sensor 4 and the package detection sensor 6 are each provided one each, by providing these two or more, the detection of a thickness change and the detection of a package are each performed in several places. You may do it. For example, by disposing the thickness detection sensor 4 and the package detection sensor 6 on both sides of the conveyor 2, biting of an article to be packaged at a side edge along the conveyance direction of the package, or a package on the conveyor 2, respectively. It is possible to detect the position, posture, etc.

It is a side view which shows schematic structure of the packaging state detection apparatus of the to-be-packaged item which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows schematic structure of the packaging state detection apparatus shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the output signal of the thickness detection sensor in case the packaging state of a to-be-packaged item is normal. It is a figure which shows an example of the output signal of the thickness detection sensor in case a to-be-packaged product has bitten. It is a figure which shows an example of the output signal of the thickness detection sensor in case a to-be-packaged object is absent.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 Conveyor 26 Rotary encoder 4 Thickness detection sensor 6 Packing body detection sensor 8 Press roller 8a, 8b Press part 10 State determination part 12 Removal apparatus

Claims (6)

An apparatus for detecting a packaging state of an article to be packaged contained in a package,
Conveying means for conveying the package;
A thickness detecting means for detecting a change in the thickness of the package to be conveyed;
A packaging state detection device for a package, comprising: a state determination unit that determines a packaging state of the package based on a detection result of the thickness detection unit. The transport means has a transport surface on which the package is placed,
A pressing roller that rotates in the conveying direction while pressing the package on the conveying surface;
The packaging state detection device for an article to be packaged according to claim 1, wherein the thickness detection means detects the thickness of the package body on the downstream side in the transport direction from the pressing roller. In the pressing roller, the pressing part is divided in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction along the conveying surface,
The packaging state detection device for an article to be packaged according to claim 2, wherein the thickness detection means is interposed between the divided pressing portions. The covered state according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the state determining unit determines a packaging state of the package based on a state determination time in which an output signal of the thickness detecting unit exceeds a preset signal level. Packaging status detection device for packages. A package body detecting means for detecting the package body;
The said state determination means takes in the output signal of the said thickness detection means, after the said package detection means detects the edge part of a package, and determines the packaging state of a to-be-packaged item. The packaging state detection apparatus of the packaged object of description. A transport distance detecting means for detecting a transport distance of the transport means;
The state determination means converts the output signal of the thickness detection means so as to correspond to the actual thickness change of the package based on the detection result of the transport distance detection means, and determines the packaging state of the package. The packaging state detection apparatus of the to-be-packaged item in any one of Claim 1 to 5.

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