JPH0733243A - Clamp type container conveying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To surely clamp and convey not only a round bottle but also a tapered bottle by opening/closing the first clamp arm and the second clamp arm individually by means of cam mechanisms. CONSTITUTION:A clamp type container conveying device 1 is provided with a pair of the first clamp arms 13A, 13B and the second clamp arms 18A, 18B at equal intervals in the circumference direction of a rotary body 7, and by these means, the upper part and the lower part, of a container 2 can be clamped at the same time. The first clamp arm 13A is interlocked with the first cam mechanism 16 via the first clamp shaft 12A, the first oscillating lever 22, and the first cam follower 23, while the second clamp arm 18A is interlocked with the second cam mechanism 21 via the second clamp shaft 17A, the second oscillating lever 28, and the second cam follower 33. The opening/closing positions of the first clamp arms 13A, 13B and the second clamp arms 18A, 18B are individually regulated according to a shape of a container, so that even a deformed container can be surely clamped and conveyed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a clamp type container transfer device having a pair of clamp arms for holding a container,
More specifically, the present invention relates to a clamp-type container transfer device that transfers a container gripped by the clamp arm as the rotating body rotates.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a clamp type container transfer device,
A rotating body rotatably provided on the frame, a pair of clamp shafts pivotally supported at equally spaced positions in the circumferential direction of the rotating body, and mutually reversely rotated, and a rotating operation provided on each clamp shaft. A pair of clamp arms that are opened and closed, a swing lever that interlocks with the clamp shaft, a cam follower that is provided on the swing lever, and a cam follower that is provided on the frame and that engages with the cam follower. A device provided with a cam member for rotating a clamp shaft via a moving lever is known (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-147516). In order to surely hold the container, two pairs of clamp arms may be provided above and below the pair of clamp shafts, and a total of four clamp arms may hold one container.

However, in the case of such a configuration, when a container has the same upper and lower thicknesses as in a round bottle or a square bottle, two sets of clamp arms hold one container. However, if the upper and lower thicknesses of the body are different, as in a tapered bottle, the container can be gripped by only one set of clamp arms, and the grip must be unstable. It was In view of such circumstances, the present invention is a container such as a round bottle or a square bottle in which the upper and lower thicknesses of the body are the same, but a container such as a tapered bottle in which the upper and lower thicknesses of the body are different. Even if it is, a clamp-type container transporting device that can be stably gripped is provided.

That is, according to the present invention, the above-mentioned conventional clamp type container transfer device, that is, a rotating body rotatably provided on a frame, and axially supported at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the rotating body. And a pair of first clamp shafts that are rotated in opposite directions to each other, a pair of first clamp arms that are provided on the first clamp shafts and that are opened and closed by the rotating operation thereof, and are interlocked with the first clamp shafts. A first swing lever, a first cam follower provided on the first swing lever, and a first cam follower provided on the frame and engaged with the first cam follower and the first swing lever. First
A clamp-type container transporting device including a first cam member for rotating a clamp shaft, wherein the first clamp shaft is a hollow shaft, and the second clamp shaft is rotatably inserted into each hollow shaft. The second clamp shafts are interlocked with each other so as to rotate in opposite directions, and the pair of second clamp shafts are provided with the pair of second clamp arms by vertically shifting the positions of the pair of second clamp shafts from each other. A second swing lever is interlocked with the second clamp shaft, and a second cam follower provided on the second swing lever is engaged with a second cam member provided on the frame,
The second cam member allows the second clamp arm to be opened and closed separately from the first clamp arm.

In the above structure, the first member is rotated with the rotation of the rotating member.
When the cam follower moves with respect to the first cam member provided on the frame, the first clamp shaft is rotated via the first cam follower and the first rocking lever, whereby a pair of first clamp shafts is provided. The first clamp arm of is opened and closed. At the same time, the second cam follower is also moved with respect to the second cam member provided on the frame in accordance with the rotation of the rotating body, and the second clamp shaft is rotated via the second cam follower and the second swing lever. Therefore, the pair of second clamp arms provided on the pair of second clamp shafts are also opened and closed. The opening / closing operation positions of the pair of first clamp arms and the pair of second clamp arms can be changed by exchanging or adjusting at least one of the first cam member and the second cam member. In the case of a container such as a square bottle in which the upper and lower thicknesses of the body are the same, if the first clamp arm and the second clamp arm are operated substantially the same, the upper and lower parts of the container are moved to the first clamp arm. With the second clamp arm, it can be surely gripped. Further, in the case of a container such as a tapered bottle in which the vertical thickness of the body is different, the operating positions of the first clamp arm and the second clamp arm are changed in consideration of the diameter of the container at the gripping position of each clamp arm. As a result, the upper and lower sides of the container can be surely gripped by the first clamp arm and the second clamp arm.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the illustrated embodiments. In FIG. 1, 1 is a clamp type container transfer device, and when a container 2 is transferred to this clamp type container transfer device 1 by a conveyor 3, 2 is synchronized with the rotation of the clamp type container transfer device 1 by the timing screw 4, and the clamp mechanism 5 of the clamp type container transfer device 1
By this, the side surface of the container 2 is supported by the positioning member 6 while being sequentially gripped at the predetermined gripping position X on the conveyor 3. The container 2 gripped at the grip position X is
The clamped container transporting device 1 is transported along with the rotation of the rotating body 7 in the counterclockwise direction, and then the gripping state by the clamp mechanism 5 is released at the release position Y, which is the delivery position to the rotary filling device 8. Then, the rotary type filling device 8 is carried into a position directly below a filling nozzle (not shown). As shown in FIG. 2, the clamp type container transfer device 1 includes a frame 9
A cylindrical member 10 fixed in the vertical direction is provided, and a drive shaft 11 is passed through the cylindrical member 10 and is rotatably supported by a bearing (not shown). The upper end of the drive shaft 11 is connected to the central portion of the lower surface of the rotating body 7, and the lower end of the drive shaft 11 is linked to a motor (not shown). The motor is capable of rotating the rotating body 7 in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. A plurality of sets of first clamp shafts 12A and 12B, each of which is a set of two, are rotatably provided at equal intervals on the outer peripheral portion of the rotating body 7, and each pair of first clamp shafts 12 is provided.
A first clamp arm 13A, 13 is provided at the upper end of A, 12B.
Each B is fixed (see FIG. 1). The pair of first clamp shafts 12A and 12B are respectively provided with gears 15,
15 are fixed and meshed with each other, and one of the first clamp shafts 12A is rotated in the forward and reverse directions by a first cam mechanism 16 to be described later, whereby the gears 15 and 15 and the first clamp shafts 12A and 12B are rotated. Through each pair of first
The clamp arms 13A and 13B can be opened and closed. The first clamp shaft 12A, 1
Each of 2B is composed of a hollow shaft, and the second clamp shafts 17A and 17B are rotatably fitted in each hollow shaft. The upper ends of the second clamp shafts 17A and 17B are projected upward from the upper ends of the first clamp shafts 12A and 12B, and the second clamp arms 18A and 18B are fixed to the upper parts thereof (Fig. 1). Therefore, the pair of second clamp arms 18A, 18B is arranged above the pair of first clamp arms 13A, 13B, and a total of four sets of two clamp arms 1 are provided.
One container 2 is gripped by 3A, 13B, 18A, and 18B. Further, the second clamp shaft 1
Gears 20 and 20 are attached to the upper ends of 7A and 17B, respectively, to form a pair of second clamp shafts 17A and 17B.
0 and 20 are meshed with each other. Then, the lower end of one of the second clamp shafts 17A is made to project downward from the lower end of the first clamp shaft 12A, and the second clamp shaft 17A is rotated in the forward and reverse directions by the second cam mechanism 21 which will be described in detail later. Thus, the pair of second clamp arms 18A, 18B can be opened and closed through the gears 20, 20 and the second clamp shafts 17A, 17B. One end of the first swing lever 22 is fixed to the lower end of each first clamp shaft 12A, and the other end of each first swing lever 22 is engaged with the above-described first cam mechanism 16. The first cam follower 23 is attached. A first return spring 24 is mounted between each first rocking lever 22 and the rotating body 7, and the first return spring 2
4 urges the first swing lever 22 in one direction, that is, in a direction in which the first clamp arms 13A, 13B are closed via the first clamp shafts 12A, 12B. The first cam mechanism 16 includes two first rotatably provided on the outer periphery of the cylindrical member 10 fixed to the frame 9.
The cam members 25 and 26 are provided, and the first return spring 24 urges the first swing lever 22 in the above-described one direction to move the first cam follower 23 to the two first cam members 25, The outer peripheral cam surfaces of 26 are commonly engaged. The two first cam members 25 and 26 are
As shown in FIG. 3, the large-diameter circular arc cam surfaces 25a and 26a and the small-diameter circular arc cam surfaces 25b and 26b, which have the same shape, are provided, and the first return spring is formed by the large-diameter circular arc cam surfaces 25a and 26a. First against 24 repellency
The cam follower 23 is displaced radially outward to open the first clamp arms 13A and 13B, and the small diameter arcuate cam surfaces 25b and 26b move the first cam follower 23 in the radial direction by the elastic force of the first return spring 24. It is displaced inwardly, whereby the first clamp arm 13
A and 13B can be closed.
The two upper and lower paired first cam members 25, 26 are arranged at different positions in the circumferential direction by a predetermined amount, and the first cam follower 23 has at least one of the large-diameter arcuate cam surfaces 25a. , 26a, the first clamp arms 13A, 13B can be kept open. And as detailed later,
The two first cam members 25 and 26 are the first adjusting mechanism 27.
By the same amount, they are rotationally displaced in opposite directions by the same amount.
The open position and the closed position of the first clamp arms 13A and 13B can be adjusted by changing the overlapping of a and 26a to the position shown by the solid line A and the position shown by the imaginary line B in FIG. 3, for example. I am trying. Similarly to the above-described first clamp shaft 12A, the second swing lever 28 is fixed to the lower end portion of each of the second clamp shafts 17A,
The second return spring 30 provided between the bracket 29 that rotates integrally with the rotating body 7 and the second rocking lever 28 causes the second clamp arms 18A and 18B to move.
Is urged to close. The bracket 29 is
The second clamp shafts 17A, 17B are attached to the second clamp shafts 17A, 17B so as to extend over the pair of second clamp shafts 17A, 17B, and thereby rotate integrally with the rotating body 7. , 17B is the above bracket 29
It is freely rotatable with respect to. The second cam mechanism 21
Is the two first cam members 25 of the first cam mechanism 16,
Two second cam members 31 and 32, which are rotatably provided on the outer periphery of the cylindrical member 10 below 26, are provided. The second cam member 31 and the second cam member 32 provided on the second rocking lever 28 by the second return spring 30. The cam follower 33 is commonly engaged with the outer peripheral cam surfaces of the two second cam members 31, 32. As shown in FIG. 4, the two second cam members 31 and 32 have the same large-diameter arcuate cam surfaces 31a and 32a and the small-diameter arcuate cam surface 31b as the first cam members 25 and 26, respectively. , 32b, and the second of the two
The cam members 31 and 32 can be rotationally displaced in the opposite directions by the same amount by the second adjusting mechanism 34. Next, referring to FIG. 2, the two first cam members 2
5) and 26 are rotationally displaced in opposite directions by the same amount.
Explaining the adjusting mechanism 27, the connecting rod 35 fixed to the upper first cam member 25 and extending vertically downward includes the lower cam member 26 and the second cam member 3 of the second cam mechanism 21.
Arc-shaped grooves 26c and 31 drilled in 1 and 32, respectively.
The cam follower 36 is provided at the lower end portion thereof so as to penetrate downward through the c and 32c. On the other hand, a connecting rod (not shown) extending vertically downward is also fixed to the lower cam member 26, and the connecting rod is connected to the second cam member 3 of the second cam mechanism 21.
An arcuate groove (not shown) formed in each of the holes 1 and 32 is penetrated to project downward, and a cam follower 37 is attached at the same height as the cam follower 36 as shown in FIG. Further, the first cam members 25 and 26 have a structure shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, arc-shaped grooves 25d and 26d are formed at predetermined positions on the overlapping surfaces where they overlap with each other.
A compression spring 38 is commonly mounted in 26d to urge the first cam members 25 and 26 in opposite directions, whereby the cam followers 36 and 37 are provided between the two and the tip cross section becomes triangular. The cam member 39 is in contact with the cam member 39. The cam member 39, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5,
A screw shaft 41, which is movable in the radial direction of the rotating body 7 along a guide member 40 fixed to the frame 9 and is rotatably supported by the guide member 40, is screwed into the cam member 39. . The screw shaft 41 is a motor 42.
It rotates in the forward and reverse directions in conjunction with (FIG. 2), and the rotation causes the cam member 39 to move in the radial direction, and the first of the two sheets is moved in accordance with the moving position of the cam member 39. The cam members 25 and 26 can be rotationally displaced in opposite directions. The other second adjusting mechanism 3
4 has the same structure as the first adjusting mechanism 27, and FIG.
, The cam follower 4 attached to each of the two second cam members 31 and 32 via a connecting rod (not shown).
3, 44 are cam members 39 ′ corresponding to the cam member 39.
Abutting against. At this time, the upper second cam member 31
Needless to say, the connecting rod connected to the first cam member 32 penetrates an arcuate groove 31d formed in the lower second cam member 32, and the second cam members 31 and 32 have an arcuate shape formed on their overlapping surfaces. The compression springs 38, which are elastically mounted in the grooves 31e and 32e in common, urge them in opposite directions. Furthermore, the cam member 39 ′ is adapted to be moved back and forth in the radial direction of the rotating body 7 separately from the cam member 39 by a mechanism having the same configuration as the first adjusting mechanism 27. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the above-mentioned positioning member 6 is provided for each clamp mechanism 5. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the rotating body 7 has guide grooves 7a formed on straight lines in the radial direction passing between the pair of second clamp shafts 17A and 17B, respectively. 2 clamp shaft 17A,
A guide groove 29a is also formed on each of the brackets 29 provided so as to straddle between 17B on the straight line in the radial direction. The slide member 45 is slidably engaged with the guide grooves 7a and 29a, and the positioning member 6 is fixed to the outer end of each slide member 45. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a cup-shaped cam member 46 is rotatably attached to the center of the rotary member 7 with respect to the rotary member 7, and the same number of slide members 45 are provided on the bottom surface of the cam member 46. The spiral cam groove 46a is formed, and the engagement pin 47 provided at the end of each slide member 45 is engaged with each cam groove 46a. A gear 48 is formed on the outer peripheral portion of the upper end of the cup-shaped cam member 46, and a gear 49 connected to a drive shaft of a motor (not shown) is meshed with the gear 48. The motor is fixed to a movable frame (not shown) provided movably on the frame 9 and maintained at the same height position, and the gear 49 of the motor is moved by the cam member 46 due to the horizontal movement of the movable frame.
Is engaged with the forward end of the gear 48, and the gear 49 of the motor is moved to the retracted end of the cam member 46 which is separated from the gear 48. While the rotating body 7 is rotating, the motor is located at the backward end.
The motor and the gear 49 may be provided on the rotating body 7. In this case, the gear 49 may be always meshed with the gear 48 of the cam member 46. In the above configuration, for example, when the tapered bottle 2 whose upper portion is narrowed is used as the container, first, the screw shaft 41 is rotated by the motor 42 of the first adjusting mechanism 27, and thereby the cam member 39.
Is moved in the radial direction of the rotating body 7 to rotationally displace the two first cam members 25 and 26 in opposite directions. Then, by adjusting the overlapping amount of the two large-diameter arcuate cam surfaces 25a and 26a, the first clamp arms 13A and 1A at the gripping position X on the conveyor 3 are adjusted.
3B enables the tapered bottle 2 to be gripped. By such adjustment, the first clamp arms 13A and 13B automatically release the taper bottle 2 at the release position Y. Next, the overlapping amount of the two large-diameter arcuate cam surfaces 31a, 32a is adjusted by the second adjusting mechanism 34, and the second clamp arms 18A, 1A at the gripping position X on the conveyor 3 are adjusted.
8B enables the tapered bottle 2 to be gripped. At this time, since the upper portion of the taper bottle 2 is constricted, the second clamp arms 18A and 18B have the same shape as the first clamp arm 1 described above.
The upper part of the taper bottle 2 is gripped at an included angle smaller than 3A and 13B. By the above adjustment, the second clamp arms 18A and 18B also automatically release the taper bottle 2 at the release position Y. Finally, a movable frame (not shown) is moved forward so that the gear 49 of the motor meshes with the gear 48 of the cam member 46. In this state, the motor is rotated to rotate the cam member 46 with respect to the rotating body 7. As a result, the positioning members 6 are moved in the radial direction all at once via the engagement pin 47 engaged with the cam groove 46a of the cam member 46 and the slide member 45, and brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the tapered bottle 2. Can be positioned. The positioning member 6 is particularly effective for a container having a flat surface portion such as a square bottle, and the positioning member 6 is brought into contact with the flat surface portion to maintain the flat surface portion in parallel with the positioning member 6. It is possible to prevent the square bottle from being gripped by the clamp arm in the rotated state. In other words, the positioning member 6 may be omitted when handling only containers that do not require positioning in the rotational direction, such as a round bottle. As mentioned above, the first
Since the open / close positions of the clamp arms 13A and 13B and the second clamp arms 18A and 18B can be adjusted separately, the body of the container 2 is not limited to a round bottle, but the body of the container is tapered. Even in the case of a deformed container such as a tapered bottle, the container can be reliably held by the first clamp arms 13A and 13B and the second clamp arms 18A and 18B. Even if it is a round bottle, the first clamp arm 13A, 13B and the second clamp arm
It is also possible to hold the neck portion and the body portion of a bottle having different diameters by the clamp arms 18A and 18B.

As described above, according to the present invention, not only round bottles and square bottles but also tapered bottles can be surely gripped, so that the versatility of the clamp type container conveying device is expanded. The effect that can be obtained is obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 〓-〓 of FIG.

3 is a schematic plan view of a first cam mechanism 16 shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view of a second cam mechanism 21 shown in FIG.

5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 〓-〓 of FIG.

[Explanation of sign]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Clamp type container conveying device 2 ... Container 7 ... Rotating body 12A, 12B, 17A, 17B ... Clamp shaft 13A, 13B, 18A, 18B ... Clamp arm 16, 21 ... Cam mechanism 22, 27 ... Swing lever 23, 33 ... Cam followers 39, 46 ... Cam members

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A rotating body rotatably provided on a frame,
A pair of first clamp shafts that are pivotally supported at equal circumferential positions of the rotating body and rotate in opposite directions to each other, and a pair of first clamp shafts that are provided on the first clamp shafts and that are opened and closed by the rotation operation thereof. 1 clamp arm, a 1st rocking lever interlocked with the 1st clamp shaft, and a 1st rocking lever provided on this 1st rocking lever.
A first cam follower provided on the frame, engaged with the first cam follower, and rotating a first clamp shaft via the first cam follower and the first swing lever.
In a clamp-type container transporting device including a cam member, the first clamp shafts are hollow shafts, and the second clamp shafts are rotatably inserted into the hollow shafts. So as to rotate reversely to each other, and the position of each pair of second clamp shafts is vertically different from that of each pair of second clamp shafts.
A clamp arm is provided, a second swing lever is interlocked with the second clamp shaft, and a second cam follower provided on the second swing lever is engaged with a second cam member provided on the frame, A clamp-type container transfer device, wherein the second clamp member is configured to open and close the second clamp arm separately from the first clamp arm.