JP7527652B2 - Carton take-out and supply device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a carton removal and supply device that removes flat folded cartons from a stacking section, erects them into rectangular tubular shapes, and transfers the erected cartons to a conveying means.

A carton removal and supply device is known that removes folded cartons from an accumulation section where flat folded cartons are accumulated, erects them into a rectangular tube shape, and supplies the erected cartons to a transport conveyor that sends them to a stuffing processing section where items are packed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is configured to remove and erect folded cartons one by one from multiple accumulation sections lined up in the transport direction of the transport conveyor using corresponding supply devices, and supply the erected cartons to the transport conveyor at a predetermined interval.

Patent No. 5878518

In the device disclosed in Patent Document 1, stacking units are arranged at the front and rear of the conveyor in the conveying direction, and folded cartons are raised one by one from the stacking units and supplied to the conveyor, so there is a problem that the raised cartons cannot be efficiently supplied to the conveyor. In addition, if multiple devices that supply raised cartons one by one to the conveyor by combining stacking units and supply devices are installed in the conveying direction of the conveyor as in the device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the installation area of the devices that supply the raised cartons becomes long, and the size of the devices is unavoidable.

The object of the present invention is to provide a carton removal and supply device that can efficiently transfer cartons to a conveying means by removing folded cartons one at a time from each of a plurality of stacking sections, forming erected cartons, and transferring them to a conveying means at regular intervals.

The carton take-out and supply device of the present invention according to claim 1 comprises:
a conveying means (11) for conveying a rectangular tubular carton (10b) in a conveying position in which flaps (16a, 18a) extend from panels (16, 18) of the carton (10b) in a direction intersecting with a conveying direction ;
a plurality of stacking sections (12) disposed on one side of the conveying means (11), in which flat folded cartons (10a) are stacked side by side with flaps (16a, 18a) extending from panels (16, 18) of the cartons (10a) in a direction parallel to the conveying direction of the conveying means (11) , and spaced apart at predetermined intervals;
a removal means (13) for removing the folded cartons (10a) one at a time from each of the stacking sections (12);
a supplying means (14) for receiving each folded carton (10a) from the removing means (13), holding the received folded cartons (10a) and erecting them into a rectangular tubular shape, and for bringing the erected rectangular tubular cartons (10b) closer to each other and transferring the rectangular tubular cartons (10b) after the widths of the cartons are brought closer together to the conveying means (11),
Before the folding carton (10a) is removed from the stacking section (12) and erected, the removal means (13) or the supply means (14) changes its position so that the extension direction of the flaps (16a, 18a) coincides with the extension direction of the flaps (16a, 18a) in the conveying position .
According to the invention of claim 1, a plurality of cartons can be raised into a rectangular tubular shape at one time from a folded state and transferred to the conveying means, so that cartons can be raised and transferred efficiently. In addition, since a plurality of cartons can be processed collectively by the removal means and the supply means, the installation area can be shortened compared to the case where a plurality of means are installed to process a plurality of cartons, and the device can be made more compact. In addition, since the intervals between the raised rectangular tubular cartons are narrower than the intervals at which the folded cartons are held before being raised, and the plurality of cartons are handed over to the conveying means, the intervals between the cartons conveyed on the conveying means can be narrowed, and the device can be made more compact. In addition, in the stacking section , folded cartons whose flaps extend in a direction different from the extension direction of the flaps in the conveying position of the square tubular carton conveyed by the conveying means are changed in position so that the extension direction of the flaps of the erected square tubular carton intersects with the conveying direction of the conveying means, and the square tubular cartons are transferred to the conveying means.This allows the openings of the cartons to face the left and right of the conveying means, making the conveying intervals between the cartons narrower, and allows the square tubular cartons to be stably supplied to the conveying means.

In the invention according to claim 2, the removal means (13) is characterized in that it has a plurality of suction parts (21a) which remove the folded cartons (10a) accumulated in each accumulation part (12), and is configured to rotate each suction part (21a) to change the orientation of each folded carton (10a) adsorbed by the suction part (21a) all at once.
According to the invention as defined in claim 2, the orientation of the folded carton removed from the stacking section can be changed during the travel time until the folded carton is handed over to the supply means, thereby shortening the cycle time of the device and increasing the processing capacity.

In the invention of claim 3, the supply means (14) is characterized in comprising: a width-aligning means (23) for bringing erected square tubular cartons (10b) closer to each other; a first relay means (24) for receiving folded cartons (10a) from the removal means (13), forming them into erected square tubular cartons (10b) and delivering them to the width-aligning means (23); and a second relay means (25) for transferring the square tubular cartons (10b) brought close to each other by the width-aligning means (23) to the conveying means (11).
According to the invention of claim 3, the operation of transferring the carton from the removal means to the width-shifting means and the operation of transferring the carton from the width-shifting means to the conveying means can be performed in parallel, thereby improving the cycle time of the device.

The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that the first relay means (24) and the second relay means (25) are configured to be able to operate together so that the movement of the folded carton (10a) from the removal means (13) to the width-adjusting means (23) by the first relay means (24) and the transfer of the rectangular tubular carton (10b) from the width-adjusting means (23) to the conveying means (11) by the second relay means (25) can be performed simultaneously.
According to the invention of claim 4, the movement to hand over the carton from the removal means to the width-aligning means and the transfer to hand over the carton from the width-aligning means to the conveying means can be performed simultaneously, thereby making it possible to make the transfer operation more efficient.

In the invention according to claim 5, the supply means (14) includes a placement table (45) on which each erected rectangular tubular carton (10b) is placed and brought close to each other to bring the rectangular tubular cartons (10b) closer together, and the bottom panel (16) of the folded carton (10a) placed on the placement table (45) is adsorbed, and the suction means (37) which has adsorbed the top panel (17) is raised and lowered and moved laterally in the width direction of the folded carton (10a), so that the folded carton (10a) is folded in reverse and then erected into a rectangular tubular shape.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, by folding the folded carton in the reverse direction, the raised carton can be favorably formed into a rectangular tubular shape.

The invention of claim 6 is characterized in that it is provided with an alignment means (43) that abuts against one side of the flap extending side of the square cylindrical carton (10b) transferred to the conveying means (11) and aligns the center of conveyance of the carton (10b) by the conveying means (11).
According to the invention of claim 6, the deviation of the carton transferred to the conveying means from the center of conveyance can be corrected, and processing in the post-processing section, such as folding the flaps and supplying articles to the carton, can be performed smoothly.

According to the present invention, multiple folded cartons can be erected into a rectangular cylindrical shape at once, and the cartons can be efficiently transferred to the carton conveying means in accordance with the carton conveying direction and conveying interval.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a carton removal and supply device. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a carton take-out and supply device. FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic front view showing a first relay means and a width-adjusting means. FIG. 4 is a schematic front view showing a second relay means and a width-adjusting means. FIG. 4 is a schematic side view showing the alignment means. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a process of folding a folded carton in reverse and erecting it by a first relay means and a width-adjusting means. FIG.

Next, a preferred embodiment of the carton removal and supply device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the carton take-out and supply device of the embodiment includes a conveyor (conveying means) 11 that supports and conveys rectangular cylindrical cartons 10b at predetermined intervals with flaps 16a, 18a extending from panels 16, 18 extending in the left-right direction perpendicular to the conveying direction, and a conveyor 12 that is disposed on one side of the conveyor 11 and extends in a direction perpendicular to the carton conveying direction of the conveyor 11. The folded cartons 10a that are folded flat are stacked side by side in an upright position with the flaps 16a, 18a extending horizontally from the panels 16, 18 of the cartons 10a, and are conveyed. The system comprises a plurality of magazines (accumulation sections) 12 spaced at predetermined intervals in the carton transport direction of the feed conveyor 11, a removal means 13 which removes folded cartons 10a one at a time from each of the plurality of magazines 12, and a supply means 14 which receives each folded carton 10a from the removal means 13, erects the plurality of folded cartons 10a inherited from the removal means 13 into a square cylindrical shape, holds each of the square cylindrical cartons 10b erected into a square cylindrical shape, brings them close to each other, and gathers up the plurality of square cylindrical cartons 10b after they have been pushed together, and transfers them all at once to the transport conveyor 11. The carton take-out and supply device is configured to change the orientation of the multiple folded cartons 10a taken out of the multiple magazines 12 before they are erected so that the extension direction of the flaps 16a, 18a of carton 10b which has been erected and is to be transported by the transport conveyor 11 is perpendicular (intersecting) to the transport direction of carton 10b by the transport conveyor 11 and extends to the left and right of the transport conveyor 11. When the folded carton 10a is erected, a square cylindrical body 15 is formed. The carton 10b has a rectangular body 15 made up of four adjacent rectangular panels: a bottom panel 16, a top panel 17, and two side panels 18, 18. Lid flaps 16a extend from both open ends of the bottom panel 16 (the open sides of the body 15), and side flaps 18a extend from both open ends of each side panel 18 (the open sides of the body 15) (see Figure 6). The carton 10b that has been erected into a rectangular tube shape will hereafter be referred to as a rectangular tube-shaped carton 10b.

As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the magazines 12 are arranged on the side of the transport conveyor 11 that intersects with the carton transport direction, with the outlet for the accumulated folded cartons 10a facing the transport conveyor 11, and the four magazines 12 are spaced at equal intervals in the carton transport direction. The folded cartons 10a are supported in the magazines 12 in an upright position with the lid flap 16a and side flaps 18a lying horizontally (horizontally long) toward the front and rear of the carton transport direction, and the bottom panel 16 facing the outlet, and the leading folded carton 10a is sent to the outlet by the feeding means and is removed one by one by the removal means 13.

1 and 2, the removal means 13 is disposed in front of the removal openings of the magazine group. The removal means 13 has a support member 20 disposed at the tip of an actuating member 19, which extends in the direction in which the four magazines 13 are arranged, and a rotating member 21 equipped with an adsorption portion 21a that generates a suction force by negative pressure is supported rotatably around the center of the suction opening of the adsorption portion 21a at intervals corresponding to the arrangement intervals of each magazine 12 on the support member 20. The actuating member 19 is configured to be rotated back and forth by a rotating means around an axis along the carton conveying direction within a predetermined angle range, so that the adsorption portion 21a can be positioned at the removal position (see the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1) where the adsorption opening faces the removal opening of the magazine 12, and at the handover position TA (see the solid line in FIG. 1) where the adsorption opening faces upward. The suction portion 21a, which has suctioned the bottom panel 16 located at the removal opening of the folded carton 10a, is moved to the transfer position TA, so that the folded carton 10a taken out of the magazine 12 is supported in a lying position at the transfer position TA with the top panel 17 facing upward and the flaps 16a, 18a extending forward and backward in a direction intersecting the carton transport direction of the transport conveyor 11. The support member 20 is also provided with a conversion means 22 which rotates all the rotating members 21 forward and backward at once, and the conversion means 22 is configured to rotate the suction portion 21a together with the rotating members 21 while the folded carton 10a taken out of the magazine 12 is moved to the transfer position TA, thereby converting the orientation of the folded carton 10a into a position in which the lid flaps 16a and side flaps 18a face in a direction perpendicular to the carton transport direction. In this embodiment, the suction portion 21a is rotated 90 degrees to change the orientation of the folding carton 10a by 90 degrees.

1 and 2, the supplying means 14 is disposed between the removal means 13 and the transport conveyor 11. The supplying means 14 includes a width-aligning means 23 that brings the raised rectangular tubular cartons 10b closer to each other and aligns them to the width, a first relaying means 24 that receives the folded carton 10a supported at the transfer position TA by the removal means 13 and passes the raised rectangular tubular cartons 10b from the folded cartons 10a to the width-aligning means 23, and a second relaying means 25 that receives the aligned rectangular tubular cartons 10b from the width-aligning means 23 and transfers them to the transport conveyor 11. The first relay means 24 and the second relay means 25 are disposed above the transfer position TA, the width-adjusting means 23 and the transport conveyor 11, and include holding sections 26, 27 for holding the folded cartons 10a or the rectangular tubular cartons 10b, as well as an advancing/retreating mechanism 28 that can reciprocate the holding sections 26, 27 in the left-right direction intersecting the carton transport direction. In the embodiment, the first holding section 26 of the first relay means 24 and the second holding section 27 of the second relay means 25 are configured to reciprocate integrally (operate integrally) by the advancing/retreating mechanism 28. The advancing/retreating mechanism 28 employs an operating mechanism that servo-controls a drive motor consisting of a servo motor. That is, above between the take-out means 13 and the transport conveyor 11, a slider 32 arranged via a first support 30 and a second support 31 to which a first holding portion 26 and a second holding portion 27 correspond is movably supported on a rail member 29 extending in the left-right direction, and the slider 32 is configured to move left and right by an advancing and retreating mechanism 28. The separation distance between the handover position TA and the width-shifting means 23 and the separation distance between the width-shifting means 23 and the transport conveyor 11 are set to be the same. That is, the first holding section 26 and the second holding section 27, which are moved back and forth together by the forward and backward moving mechanism 28, are configured so that when the first holding section 26 is positioned above the handover position TA at a position where it can receive the folded carton 10a from the removal means 13, the second holding section 27 is positioned above the width-aligning means 23 at a position where it can receive the multiple rectangular tubular cartons 10b erected from the width-aligning means 23, and the first holding section 26 is positioned above the width-aligning means 23 at a position where it can deliver the rectangular tubular cartons 10b erected at the width-aligning means 23, so that the separation distances between the handover position TA, the width-aligning means 23, and the transport conveyor 11 are set to the same distance.

1 and 4, the first relay means 24 is configured such that a first lifting mechanism 33 is provided on the first support 30 disposed on the slider 32, and the first lifting mechanism 33 lifts and lowers a first lifting member 34. A lateral movement mechanism 35 is provided on the first lifting member 34, and the lateral movement mechanism 35 moves a lateral movement body 36 back and forth in the width direction (direction along the carton conveying direction) of the multiple folded cartons 10a supported at the transfer position TA. The lateral movement body 36 is provided with the first holding portion 26 capable of holding the folded cartons 10a. The first holding section 26 has four first suction sections (suction means) 37 which are arranged at predetermined intervals on the horizontal mover 36 corresponding to the arrangement intervals of the suction sections 21a of the removal means 13 and generate suction force by negative pressure, and each first suction section 37 is arranged with its suction port facing downward so as to receive four folded cartons 10a supported at the transfer position TA at once by suctioning each top panel 17 with the first suction section 37. The first lifting mechanism 33 is configured to lift and lower the first holding section 26 above the transfer position TA to suction the top panel 17 of the folded carton 10a at the transfer position TA with the first suction section 37, and to lift and lower the first holding section 26 above the alignment means 23 so as to deliver the folded carton 10a from which suction has been released to a loading table 45 (described later) of the alignment means 23. In addition, when the first lifting mechanism 33 lifts the folded carton 10a placed on the mounting table 45 to erect it, the first suction part 37 is moved back and forth in the width direction by the lateral movement mechanism 35, and the first suction part 37 is operated to move in an arc trajectory with the end of the folded carton that is to be erected as a fulcrum, so that the folded carton 10a can be reverse-folded and erected (see FIG. 7). The first lifting mechanism 33 and the lateral movement mechanism 35 both employ linear operating mechanisms using servo-controlled electric actuators, and are configured to be able to change the amount of lifting movement and the amount of lateral movement in the width direction of the first suction part 37.

1 and 5, the second relay means 25 is configured such that the second support 31 arranged on the slider 32 is provided with a second lifting mechanism 38 consisting of a linear operating mechanism using a servo-controlled electric actuator, and the second lifting mechanism 38 lifts and lowers the second lifting member 39. The second lifting member 39 is provided with the second holding portion 27 capable of holding the square tubular carton 10b. The second holding portion 27 is provided with four second suction portions 40 that are arranged on the second lifting member 39 at the carton transport intervals of the square tubular cartons 10b on the transport conveyor 11 and generate suction force by negative pressure, and each second suction portion 40 is arranged with its suction port facing downward, and is configured to receive the four square tubular cartons 10b that have been shifted in width by the shifting means 23 at once by suctioning each top panel 17 with the second suction portion 40. The second holding section 27 is provided with clamping sections 41 capable of clamping the body section 15 of the rectangular tubular carton 10b, each corresponding to each second suction section 40. Each clamping section 41 is provided with a pair of clamping members 41a, 41a that are opposed to each other in the width direction and can move toward and away from each other, and is configured to simultaneously open and close the clamping members 41a, 41a of all the clamping sections 41 by an opening and closing mechanism 42 driven by a drive motor formed of a servo motor. The second lifting mechanism 38 raises and lowers the second holding section 27 above the width-aligning means 23, adsorbs the top panel 17 of the rectangular tubular carton 10b supported by the width-aligning means 23 with the second suction section 40, clamps the body section 15 with the clamping section 41, receives it, and lowers the second holding section 27 from above the transport conveyor 11. When the rectangular tubular carton 10b is placed on the transport conveyor 11, the adsorption and clamping are released and the rectangular tubular carton 10b is delivered to the transport conveyor 11.

6, the second lifting member 39 of the second relay means 25 is provided with an alignment means 43 for aligning the left-right center of the rectangular tubular carton 10b with the conveying center of the conveying conveyor 11 when the rectangular tubular carton 10b is delivered to the conveying conveyor 11. The alignment means 43 includes a pair of abutment members 43a, 43a spaced apart left-right across the second suction portion 40, and actuating means 44, 44 such as an air cylinder for moving the alignment members 43a, 43a closer to and farther apart. Each abutment member 43a is an upper opening edge (an end edge on the extending side of the flaps 16a, 18a of the rectangular tubular carton 10b) that does not have an extended flap in each body portion 15 of the four rectangular tubular cartons 10b, and includes abutment portions 43b that can abut against both end edges of the top panel 17. Then, the pair of abutting members 43a, 43a are moved by the operating means 44, 44 from a standby position spaced outward from the body 15 of the rectangular tubular carton 10b to a clamping position where they can abut against both ends of the top panel 17. The abutting members 43b, 43b lightly clamp both sides of the top panel 17 of each rectangular tubular carton 10b delivered to the transport conveyor 11, aligning the left-right center of the rectangular tubular carton 10b with the transport center of the transport conveyor 11.

2, 4 and 5, the width-adjusting means 23 has four loading tables 45 spaced at a predetermined distance in the conveying direction of the transport conveyor 11, and is configured so that the mutual spacing between the loading tables 45 can be changed by a spacing change mechanism 46. The spacing change mechanism 46 is configured so that the spacing between the loading tables 45 can be changed between a first spacing (see FIG. 4) that is the same as the respective support spacing of the folded cartons 10a inherited from the removal means 13 at the transfer position TA, and a second spacing (see FIG. 5) that is the spacing for transferring square tubular cartons 10b to the transport conveyor 11 and is narrower than the first spacing and is the same as the carton conveying spacing. Each mounting table 45 is provided with an adsorption section 45a that generates a suction force by negative pressure with its suction port facing upward, and is configured so that the bottom panel 16 of the folding carton 10a, whose top panel 17 has been adsorbed by the first adsorption section 37 of the first relay means 24 at the first interval, can be held on the mounting table by the adsorption section 45a. The folding carton 10a, whose bottom panel 16 has been adsorbed by the adsorption section 45a of the mounting table 45, is configured so that, with the top panel 17 being adsorbed by the first adsorption section 37, the first adsorption section 37 is moved on the arcuate track by the first lifting mechanism 33 and the lateral movement mechanism 35 to reversely fold the top panel 17 in the direction opposite to the current folding direction, and then the top panel 17 is raised to a position vertically opposite the bottom panel 16, so that the folding carton 10a is erected into a rectangular tube shape (see FIG. 7).

2, 4, and 5, the interval change mechanism 46 includes an operating mechanism 48 disposed on the moving base 47, and a variable motor 49 such as a servo motor that operates the operating mechanism 48. The variable motor 49 is disposed on one end of the moving base 47 in the front-rear direction, and a first driving rotor 50 and a second driving rotor 51 having a smaller diameter than the first driving rotor 50 are disposed on the output shaft 49a of the variable motor 49 so as to rotate together while being spaced apart in the axial direction. In addition, a first driven rotor 53 having the same diameter as the first driving rotor 50 and a second driven rotor 54 having the same diameter as the second driving rotor 51 are supported on a driven shaft 52 rotatably supported on the other end of the moving base 47 in the front-rear direction so as to be freely rotatable while being spaced apart in the axial direction. An endless first rope-like body 55 is wound around the first driving rotor 50 and the first driven rotor 53, and an endless second rope-like body 56 is wound around the second driving rotor 51 and the second driven rotor 54. By driving the variable motor 49, the first rope-like body 55 and the second rope-like body 56 are configured to run in the same direction.

1, 4, and 5, a slider 58 is provided on the moving base 47 so as to be movable along guide rails 57, 57, and the mounting tables 45 are provided on each of the sliders 58. The two mounting tables 45, 45 located on the outside are connected to the first rope-like body 55, and the two mounting tables 45, 45 located on the inside are connected to the second rope-like body 56. One mounting table 45 connected to the first rope-like body 55 is connected to an upper straight running part that runs on an upper straight track of the first rope-like body 55 wound in a loop shape, and the other mounting table 45 is connected to a lower straight running part that runs on a lower straight track of the first rope-like body 55, and the two mounting tables 45, 45 move toward and away from each other as the first rope-like body 55 runs forward and backward. Similarly, one of the mounting tables 45 connected to the second rope-like body 56 is connected to an upper linear running portion that runs on an upper linear track of the second rope-like body 56 wound in a loop shape, and the other mounting table 45 is connected to a lower linear running portion that runs on a lower linear track of the second rope-like body 56, and the two mounting tables 45, 45 move toward and away from each other as the second rope-like body 56 runs forward and backward. The interval change mechanism 46 is configured so that when the first driving rotor 50 and the second driving rotor 51 are rotated in the forward direction to bring the four mounting tables 45 closer to each other and approximately densely packed, the interval between the four mounting tables 45 becomes the second interval, and when the first driving rotor 50 and the second driving rotor 51 are rotated in the reverse direction to move the four mounting tables 45 away from each other, the interval between the four mounting tables 45 becomes the first interval. The variable motor 49, which is a servo motor, is configured to be able to change the first and second intervals by changing the amount of movement of the cord-like bodies 55 and 56.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the transport conveyor 11 includes a loading section 59 consisting of multiple bars 59a (two in this embodiment), and a feed device 60 that clamps and transports the body 15 of the rectangular tubular carton 10b transferred to the loading section 59 by the second relay means 25 downstream. The rectangular tubular carton 10b transferred to the loading section 59 by the second relay means 25 is loaded in a state in which the flaps 16a, 18a extend from the panels 16, 18 of the body 15, which is oriented horizontally, to the left and right, perpendicular to the transport direction, and straddle both bars 59a, 59a.

The feed device 60 is provided with four clamping sections 61 that are arranged below the placement section 59 and can clamp the body section 15 between the bars 59a, 59a of each rectangular tubular carton 10b placed on the placement section 59 from both sides in the width direction (front and rear in the carton conveying direction), a lifting means 62 that moves all the clamping sections 61 up and down, and a reciprocating mechanism that can move the clamping sections 61 back and forth in the extension direction of the placement section 59 (carton conveying direction) together with the lifting means 62. The lifting means 62 is configured to lift and lower the clamping sections 61 between a lower retracted position recessed from the placement section 59 and a clamping position protruding upward from between the bars 59a, 59a, and is configured to convey four rectangular tubular cartons 10b at a time by moving the clamping sections 61 that clamp the rectangular tubular cartons 10b at the clamping position downstream in the carton conveying direction.

Next, the operation of the carton take-out and supplying device according to the embodiment will be described.
1 and 2, the actuating member 19 of the removal means 13 is rotated to bring each suction portion 21a into contact with the outlet of the corresponding magazine 12, and when the suction portion 21a is pressed against the bottom panel 16 of the folding carton 10a facing the outlet, the bottom panel 16 is sucked by the suction portion 21a. When the actuating member 19 is rotated to move the suction portion 21a toward the takeover position TA, one folding carton 10a is removed at a time from each of the four magazines 12. While the suction portions 21a are moving to the transfer position TA, all of the suction portions 21a are rotated 90 degrees at once by the conversion means 22, so that each folding carton 10a to which the bottom panel 16 is adsorbed by each suction portion 21a is changed in position at once to a horizontal orientation with the top panel 17 facing upward and the lid flap 16a and side flaps 18a facing left and right, and positioned at the transfer position TA.

After the first holding portion 26 of the first relay means 24 is moved above the takeover position TA by the forward/backward movement mechanism 28, the first lifting mechanism 33 lowers the first lifting member 34 to press each first suction portion 37 against the top panel 17 of the corresponding folded carton 10a, so that the top panel 17 is adsorbed to the first suction portion 37. After the suction by the suction portion 21a of the removal means 13 is released, the first lifting mechanism 33 raises the first lifting member 34, and four folded cartons 10a are taken over from the removal means 13 to the first relay means 24 at once. As shown in FIG. 4, the forward/backward movement mechanism 28 moves the first holding portion 26 of the first relay means 24 above the width adjustment means 23 in which the four placement tables 45 are positioned at a first interval. Then, the first lifting mechanism 33 lowers the first lifting member 34 to press the bottom panel 16 of the folding carton 10a, whose top panel 17 is adsorbed by each of the first suction parts 37, against the corresponding mounting table 45, so that the bottom panel 16 is adsorbed onto the mounting table by the suction parts 45a. The removal means 13, which has handed over the folding carton 10a to the first relay means 24, removes the next four folding cartons 10a from the magazine 12, and before the first relay means 24 returns above the transfer position TA, changes the position of the four folding cartons 10a and positions them at the transfer position TA.

As shown in Fig. 7(a), with the bottom panel 16 of the folding carton 10a being adsorbed to the mounting table 45, the first suction portion 37 of the first relay means 24, which is adsorbing the top panel 17, is moved in the arcuate orbit by the first lifting mechanism 33 and the lateral movement mechanism 35, so that the body 15 of the folding carton 10a, which has once been made into a rectangular tube shape, is reverse folded to a position where the top panel 17 reaches the opposite side across the bottom panel 16, as shown in Fig. 7(b). Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 7(c), the first suction portion 37 is moved in the opposite direction by the first lifting mechanism 33 and the lateral movement mechanism 35 to a position where the top panel 17 faces the bottom panel 16, and the folding carton 10a is erected into a rectangular tube shape. After the suction by the first suction part 37 of the first relay means 24 is released, the spacing change mechanism 46 moves the four loading tables 45 closer together to narrow the spacing between them, so that the spacing between the four rectangular tubular cartons 10b becomes a second spacing that matches the cart transport spacing by the transport conveyor 11, as shown in FIG. 5.

After the second holding portion 27 of the second relay means 25 is moved above the width-shifting means 23 by the forward/backward moving mechanism 28, the second lifting mechanism 38 lowers the second lifting member 39 to press each second suction portion 40 against the top panel 17 of the rectangular tubular carton 10b on the corresponding loading platform 45, so that the top panel 17 is suctioned to the second suction portion 40. In addition, the opening/closing mechanism 42 closes the clamping members 41a, 41a of all the clamping portions 41, so that the body portion 15 of each rectangular tubular carton 10b is clamped by the clamping members 41a, 41a. Then, after the suction by the suction portion 45a of the width-shifting means 23 is released, the second lifting mechanism 38 raises the second lifting member 39, and four rectangular tubular cartons 10b are transferred from the width-shifting means 23 to the second relay means 25 at once (see FIG. 5).

As shown in FIG. 1, when the second holding portion 27 of the second relay means 25 is moved above the width shifting means 23, the first holding portion 26 of the first relay means 24 is moved above the transfer position TA, and the first relay means 24 performs the operation of transferring the four folded cartons 10a that have been removed from the magazine 12 by the removal means 13 and have been positioned at the transfer position TA after being changed in posture, as described above. After transferring the rectangular tubular carton 10b to the second relay means 25, the width shifting means 23 widens the mutual intervals between the four mounting tables 45 to the first interval by the interval changing mechanism 46, and waits for the transfer of the next folded carton 10a by the first relay means 24.

When the four rectangular tubular cartons 10b are delivered from the width-shifting means 23 to the second relay means 25, the forward/backward movement mechanism 28 moves the second holding portion 27 of the second relay means 25 above the transport conveyor 11 (see the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1). In addition, the second lifting mechanism 38 lowers the second lifting member 39, placing the rectangular tubular carton 10b held by the second holding portion 27 on the placement portion 59 of the transport conveyor 11 and releasing the hold of the rectangular tubular carton 10b by the second holding portion 27, thereby transferring the four rectangular tubular cartons 10b from the second relay means 25 to the transport conveyor 11 all at once. 6, after the second holding section 27 releases the rectangular tubular cartons 10b, the aligning means 43 is operated to bring the abutting members 43a, 43a into contact with the left and right edges of the body 15 of each rectangular tubular carton 10b, thereby aligning the four rectangular tubular cartons 10b so that their left-right centers coincide with the conveying center of the transport conveyor 11. On the transport conveyor 11, each rectangular tubular carton 10b is clamped by each clamping section 61 raised from the retracted position to the clamping position by the lifting means 62, and then the four clamping sections 61 are moved downstream all at once by the reciprocating mechanism, whereby the four rectangular tubular cartons 10b are transported to the post-processing section. After transporting the rectangular tubular carton 10b to the post-processing section, the clamping section 61 is lowered to a retracted position by the lifting means 62, and then returned by the reciprocating mechanism to a position where the rectangular tubular carton 10b is supplied by the second relay means 25.

Even if the orientation of the folded cartons 10a stored in the magazine 12 differs from the orientation of the rectangular tubular cartons 10b when transported by the transport conveyor 11, the carton removal and supply device of the embodiment can change the orientation of the folded cartons 10a to the orientation of the rectangular tubular cartons 10b when transported by the transport conveyor 11 before the folded cartons 10a are erected, and transfer them to the transport conveyor 11. In addition, since the orientation of the folded cartons 10a is changed by the removal means 13, the orientation of the folded cartons 10a can be changed within the travel time until the folded cartons 10a removed from the magazine 12 are moved to the transfer position TA where they are handed over to the first relay means 24, thereby shortening the cycle time of the device and improving the processing capacity.

The carton removal and supply device of the embodiment is configured to remove a plurality of folded cartons 10a one at a time from each of a plurality of magazines 12, erect the folded cartons 10a into a square tubular shape at once from the folded state, and transfer them to the conveyor 11, so that the folded cartons 10a can be erected and transferred efficiently. In addition, since the removal means 13 and the supply means 14 process a plurality of cartons 10a, 10b together, the installation area of the means 13, 14 for removing and erecting a plurality of cartons can be prevented from becoming too long, and the device can be made compact. In addition, since the intervals between the erected square tubular cartons 10b are narrower than the intervals between the folded cartons 10a before erection and are transferred to the conveyor 11, the intervals between the cartons transported on the conveyor 11 can be narrowed, and the device can be made compact. Furthermore, the folding cartons 10a, whose flaps 16a, 18a extend laterally in the magazine 12, are transferred to the conveyor 11 after being changed in position so that the extension direction of the flaps 16a, 18a of the erected rectangular tubular cartons 10b intersects with the carton conveying direction of the conveyor 11. This allows the openings of the rectangular tubular cartons 10b to face the left and right sides of the conveyor 11, narrowing the carton conveying intervals and stably supplying the rectangular tubular cartons 10b to the conveyor 11. In addition, since multiple folding cartons 10a and rectangular tubular cartons 10b are processed at the same time, the processing capacity per unit time can be increased.

The folded carton 10a taken out by the removal means 13 is received by the first relay means 24 and handed over to the width-adjusting means 23, while the square tubular carton 10b adjusted to the width by the width-adjusting means 23 is received by the second relay means 25 and handed over to the transport conveyor 11. This allows the operation of transferring the folded carton 10a from the removal means 13 to the width-adjusting means 23 by the first relay means 24 and the operation of transferring the square tubular carton 10b from the width-adjusting means 23 to the transport conveyor 11 by the second relay means 25 to be performed in parallel, improving the cycle time of the device and increasing processing capacity. In addition, because the first relay means 24 and the second relay means 25 are configured to be able to operate together, the movement of the folded carton 10a from the removal means 13 to the width-aligning means 23 by the first relay means 24 and the transfer of the rectangular tubular carton 10b from the width-aligning means 23 to the transport conveyor 11 by the second relay means 25 can be performed simultaneously, improving the efficiency of the delivery operation.

The carton take-out and supply device of the embodiment is configured to reverse-fold the folded carton 10a transferred to the width-aligning means 23 by the first relay means 24 by moving the first suction section 37 that suctions the top panel 17 of the folded carton 10a, so that the raised rectangular tubular carton 10b is prevented from returning to the folding direction and can be well formed into a rectangular tubular shape. In addition, the aligning means 43 aligns the left-right center of the rectangular tubular carton 10b transferred to the transport conveyor 11 to the transport center of the transport conveyor 11, so that the deviation of the rectangular tubular carton 10b transferred to the transport conveyor 11 from the transport center can be corrected, and post-processing such as folding the flaps 16a, 18a and supplying items to the rectangular tubular carton 10b can be well performed.

The first lifting mechanism 33 and the lateral movement mechanism 35 that move the first suction part 37 in the first relay means 24 are configured to use servo-controlled mechanisms, so the amount of movement of the first suction part 37 can be appropriately changed by a set value depending on the size of the carton, and reverse folding and erecting of the folded carton 10a can be performed appropriately for each size. In addition, the spacing change mechanism 46 of the width adjustment means 23 is configured to use a servo-controlled mechanism, so the spacing of the loading tables 45 can be appropriately changed by a set value depending on the size of the carton, making it easy to accommodate changes in carton size.

(Example of change)
The present invention is not limited to the configurations of the examples, and can be modified as follows, for example. Furthermore, the configurations described in the examples are not limited to the following modifications, and various embodiments can be adopted within the scope of the gist of the present invention.
(1) The number of cartons to be removed from the magazines 12 and transferred to the transport conveyor 11 in one go is not limited to four, but may be any number greater than one, and it is sufficient to provide the corresponding number of magazines 12, suction portions 21a, first suction portions 37, second suction portions 40, clamping portions 41 and loading tables 45.
(2) The folding cartons 10a may be stacked vertically in the magazine 12, and the folding cartons 10a may be removed one by one from an outlet located at the bottom or top.
(3) A conversion means may be provided in the first relay means 24 so that the orientation of the folded carton 10a received from the removal means 13 is converted before it is handed over to the alignment means 23.
(4) It is possible to adopt a configuration in which the first relay means 24 and the second relay means 25 do not move integrally, but each of them is moved by an independent forward/backward movement mechanism.
(5) The second relay means 25 may have a plurality of second suction sections 40 and a plurality of clamping sections 41 that are arranged so that the mutual spacing between them can be adjusted, and the second relay means 25 may urge the held rectangular tubular cartons 10b in width. In this manner, when the second relay means 25 is provided with a width-pushing function, the loading platform 45 onto which the folded cartons 10a are transferred by the first relay means 24 need only be provided with a suction function and does not move.
(6) The alignment means 43 may be provided during the transport process on the transport conveyor 11. Also, the alignment means 43 may be configured to align the extended edges of the flaps 16a, 18b by abutting the abutting portion 43b against the extended edges of the flaps 16a, 18b, if the aligning means 43 is the edge of the flap extending side of the rectangular tubular carton 10b. The alignment means 43 may be provided as necessary.
(7) The transport conveyor 11 may be a known conveyor that supports the rectangular tubular cartons 10b at the front and rear positions in the transport direction with support pieces.
(8) A configuration can be adopted in which the transfer operation of the folded cartons 10a from the removal means 13 to the alignment means 23 and the transfer operation of the rectangular tubular cartons 10b from the alignment means 23 to the transport conveyor 11 are performed by a single relay means.
(9) The structure for reverse-folding the folding carton 10a may be provided as needed.

10a Folding carton, 10b Square tubular carton (square tubular carton)
11 Conveyor (conveying means), 12 Magazine (accumulating section), 13 Removal means, 14 Supply means, 16 Bottom panel (lower panel), 16a Lid flap (flap)
17 Top panel (upper panel), 18 Side panel (panel)
18a side flap (flap), 21a suction portion, 23 width adjustment means, 24 first relay means, 25 second relay means, 37 first suction portion (suction means)
43 Alignment means, 45 Placement table

Claims (6)

a conveying means for conveying a rectangular cylindrical carton in a conveying position in which a flap extends from a panel of the carton in a direction intersecting with a conveying direction ;
a plurality of stacking sections disposed on one side of the conveying means, in which flat folded cartons are stacked in a line with flaps extending from panels of the cartons in a direction along the conveying direction of the conveying means , the stacking sections being spaced apart by a predetermined distance;
removal means for removing folded cartons one at a time from each of said stacking sections;
a supply means for receiving each folded carton from the removal means, holding the received folded cartons and erecting them into a rectangular tubular shape, and for bringing the erected rectangular tubular cartons closer to each other and transferring the rectangular tubular cartons after the widths of the cartons are brought together and loaded onto the conveying means;
a carton removal and supply device configured to change the position of the folded carton by the removal means or the supply means before the folded carton is removed from the stacking section and erected so that the extension direction of the flap coincides with the extension direction of the flap in the conveying position . The carton take-out/supply device according to claim 1, characterized in that the take-out means is provided with a plurality of suction sections that take out the folded cartons stacked in each stacking section, and is configured to rotate each suction section to simultaneously change the orientation of each folded carton that has been picked up by the suction section. The carton take-out and supply device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the supply means includes a width-aligning means for bringing erected rectangular tubular cartons closer to each other, a first relay means for receiving folded cartons from the take-out means, turning them into erected rectangular tubular cartons and passing them to the width-aligning means, and a second relay means for transferring the rectangular tubular cartons brought close to each other by the width-aligning means to the conveying means. The carton take-out and supply device according to claim 3, characterized in that the first relay means and the second relay means are configured to be operable together so that the movement of the folded carton from the take-out means to the width-aligning means by the first relay means and the transfer of the rectangular tubular carton from the width-aligning means to the conveying means by the second relay means can be performed simultaneously. The carton take-out and supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the supply means includes a platform on which each erected rectangular tubular carton is placed and brought close to each other to bring the rectangular tubular cartons closer together, and the bottom panel of the folded carton placed on the platform is sucked, and the suction means which sucks the top panel is raised and lowered and moved laterally in the width direction of the folded carton, so that the folded carton is reverse-folded and erected into a rectangular tubular shape. A carton take-out and supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it is provided with an alignment means that abuts against the edge of the flap extension side of the rectangular cylindrical carton transferred to the conveying means to align the center of the carton being conveyed by the conveying means.

Images