JPH07223602A - Can caser - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To automatically and assuredly perform a box-packing even when cans are difficult to be aligned or stacked such as a can of food, etc., of which the outer diameter at the seamed part is largest by a method wherein for a specified quantity of aligned cans, a case which is opened facing downward is put from the top, and in addition, a mechanism to turn the case upside-down, etc., is provided. CONSTITUTION:A plurality of cans 22, which are aligned as a group, are moved forward by a can-feeding mechanism B and positioned. In the meantime, a case 1 to contain the cans 22 is fed to a location on the top of the group of the cans 22 by a case-feeding mechanism A under a condition wherein the case is opened facing downward, and positioned. Then, a push-in mechanism C pushes down the case l toward the group of cans 22, and the case 1 is put on the group of cans 22 without collapsing the aligned condition of cans 22. Then, the case is fed to an inverting mechanism E by a discharging/feeding mechanism D while keeping the condition. The group of cans 22 on which the case 1 is put are held by the inverting mechanism E so that the cans 22 may not drop, and the inverting mechanism E rotates with the horizontal axis as a pivot under that condition.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for packing a plurality of aligned cans in a box such as a cardboard carton.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a predetermined number of beverage cans, food cans, and the like are stored in a cardboard box or the like, and the boxing work therefor is either manual work or mechanical work depending on the shape of the can. Was adopted. That is, in the case of can packaging in which the maximum outer diameter portion of the outer peripheral surface has a simple cylindrical shape and is in a relatively stable standing state, the cans of this type are aligned and a plurality of cans are handled collectively. Because it is easy to do, mechanization is in progress. On the other hand, for example, canned food consisting of two-piece cans is such that the canned part has a maximum outer diameter,
Since the height is low, it is necessary to stack multiple boxes for packaging, so many are not suitable for mechanization, and in such canning, it is unavoidable that boxing is done manually by hand. Is the reality.

[0003]

If the boxing work of canned foods is done manually, it will impose a simple repetitive work, which will impose a heavy burden on the operator, and the high speed work will not be limited to that. However, there is a problem that work mistakes easily occur.

For that reason, it is desired to mechanize the box packing work. However, in the case of mainly food canning, in order to secure the number of pieces to be put in one box, they must be stacked and put in the box, or the outer diameter shape There are many factors that are not suitable for mechanization, such as the fact that it is not a simple geometric shape, and the reality is that mechanization is delayed because it cannot be overcome.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a can caser which can stably and automatically perform box packing even for food cans of low height. To do.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a can feed mechanism for advancing a plurality of cans arranged in a matrix at a constant pitch as a group, and a case opened downward. , A case feed mechanism for carrying and positioning above the one group of cans positioned at a predetermined position, and by pushing down the case positioned above the one group of cans toward the one group of cans,
A pushing mechanism for covering the case with a group of cans, a discharge feeding mechanism for sending the group of cans and the case covered with these cans to the front in the feeding direction of the can feeding mechanism, and a discharging mechanism for feeding the case. A reversing mechanism that holds the case in a state in which the opening is closed so that it cannot be dropped and that rotates around a horizontal axis, and a case that is reversed so that the opening is directed upward by the reversing mechanism. It is characterized in that it is provided with a discharging mechanism for sending out from the reversing mechanism in the state of containing the can.

[0007]

In the present invention, a plurality of cans are arranged as a group, and the cans are advanced by the can feeding mechanism and positioned at a predetermined position. On the other hand, the case for accommodating the cans is fed downward to the above-mentioned group of cans and positioned by the case feeding mechanism in a state of being opened downward. When the group of cans and cases are thus positioned relative to each other, the pushing mechanism pushes the case down toward the group of cans, which covers the case. That is, a group of cans are put in the case with the top and bottom inverted. Therefore, since a group of cans are not moved up and down, even if a plurality of these cans are stacked, the group of cans can be accommodated in the case without disturbing the aligned state. The case thus covered with the can is sent to the reversing mechanism by the discharge sending mechanism while maintaining the state. The group of cans covered with the case is held by the reversing mechanism so as not to drop, and in that state, the reversing mechanism rotates about the horizontal axis. Therefore, since the case and the group of cans accommodated in the case rotate about the horizontal axis, the case is rotated upward by 180 ° so that the case is opened upward. Then, the discharging mechanism operates in this state, and the case in which the posture is changed upward and the group of cans is accommodated is sent out from the reversing mechanism.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, the present invention will be described based on the embodiments shown in the drawings. The embodiment described below is an example in which a group of cans stacked in two layers is packed in a cardboard carton as a case, and FIG. 1 schematically shows the whole process. Among them, the cardboard carton is shown. The case feed mechanism A for supplying 1 is configured as follows.

The cardboard carton 1 is assembled in a rectangular box and is folded in a flat plate shape so that a pair of opposing surfaces are in close contact with each other in the stock state. Many are arranged in a standing state. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, guide rails 3 that support the left and right sides of the cardboard carton 1 that is folded up in a flat plate shape and erected are arranged above the conveyor 2, and these guide rails 3 are parallel to each other. At the tip position of the portion, a claw 4 is provided that defines the forward end position of the cardboard carton 1 that is in close contact with each other and moves forward in a standing state. The claws 4 are small protrusions protruding from the facing surfaces of the respective guide rails 3, and are adapted to abut the corrugated cardboard carton 1 moving forward on the conveyor 2 to temporarily stop the forward movement. .

Further, one guide rail 3 of the guide rails 3 is formed obliquely so that the front side of the portion where the claw 4 is provided gradually approaches the other guide rail 3 side. The distance between the tip of 3a and the other guide rail 3 is set to be substantially equal to the width when the cardboard carton 1 is opened. Further, an actuator 5 such as an air cylinder or an electric cylinder is provided on the front side of the oblique portion 3a in the traveling direction of the conveyor 2.
A suction pad 6 that is moved back and forth by is provided. That is, the most advanced cardboard carton 1 that is in contact with the pawl 4 and is stopped is adsorbed by the adsorption pad 6 and pulled out by the actuator 5, so that the cardboard carton 1 advances to the oblique portion 3a of the guide rail 3, Here, it receives a load from the left and right and opens in a rectangular shape.

A position apart from the tip of the guide rail 3 is a flap folding station, and a flap folding device (not shown) is arranged below the flap folding station. This flap bending device applies, for example, a predetermined arm from the inside to the outside of each flap 1a on the lower side (that is, the open end side) of the cardboard carton 1 that is opened in a rectangular shape. The flap 1a is bent 90 ° outward. Further, at a position corresponding to the upper short piece flap 1b of the flap folding station, an "L" -shaped swing lever 7 is provided at the short piece flap 1b.
It is suspended at its upper end so as to swing around an axis parallel to b. That is, the swing lever 7 swings from the outside of the short piece flap 1b toward the inside to bend the short piece flap 1b inside the cardboard carton 1 by 90 °. Further, a guide plate 8 for bending the other short piece flap 1b is arranged at a position facing the swing lever 7. As shown in FIG. 1, the guide plate 8 is a plate whose tip on the flap folding station side is curved so as to warp, and the cardboard carton 1 is pushed under the guide plate 8 so that the other short flap 1b is inserted. It is designed to be bent 90 ° inward.

A pusher 9 for pushing the cardboard carton 1 toward the guide plate 8 by an actuator such as an air cylinder is arranged on the side opposite to the guide plate 8 with the flap folding station interposed therebetween. Further, at the position beyond the guide plate 8 in the direction in which the cardboard carton 1 is advanced by the pusher 9, the adhesive is sprayed from the nozzle 10 (see FIG. 4) onto the upper surface of the short flap 1b bent inward. An adhesive applying device (not shown) to be applied is arranged. Pusher 9
An upper guide 11 that gradually bends the long piece flap 1c as the cardboard carton 1 advances is provided at a position beyond the adhesive application device in the direction in which the cardboard carton 1 advances. This upper guide 11
Is a pair of plates in which the base end sides of the cardboard carton 1 in the forward direction are erected so as to face each other, and the tip end side is twisted in the middle part so as to be parallel to the moving surface of the carton 1. As the cardboard carton 1 advances, these plates gradually push the long piece flaps 1c into the cardboard carton 1.
Finally, it is designed to be bent at 90 °. The long piece flap 1c bent in this manner is superposed on the short piece flap 1b which has been bent in advance, and both are adhered to each other. An appropriate crimping device may be provided to firmly join the long and short flaps 1b and 1c.

Now, a feeding mechanism for moving the cardboard carton 1 while assembling it as described above will be described. In FIG. 5, the cardboard carton 1 is conveyed while the lower flap 1a is opened outward by about 90 ° as described above. Therefore, the pair of left and right flat plate side tables 12 are larger than the width of the cardboard carton 1. It is arranged with a narrow space. Further, on the upper side of these side tables 12, side guides 13 for sliding the flaps 1a opened outward are sandwiched between the side tables 12, respectively. This side guide 13
Has a standing wall portion that comes into contact with the outer surface of the cardboard carton 1 and linearly guides the cardboard carton 1, and the portion above the standing wall portion is the carton pusher 1
There are four movement routes.

The carton pusher 14 is for receiving the cardboard carton 1 from the pusher 9 and further moving it forward. A bar 15 extending from the side of the cardboard carton 1 is attached to an actuator 16 such as an air cylinder which moves back and forth. Further, the actuator 16 is arranged so as to reciprocate in a direction parallel to the side guide 13. That is, the actuator 16 causes the bar 15 to protrude when moving forward, and the actuator 16 is moved in that state to push the rear end surface of the cardboard carton 1 by the bar 15, and when retracting, the actuator 16 pulls back the bar 15 to move the subsequent cardboard. It does not interfere with carton 1.

A portion in front of the tip portions of the side table 12 and the side guide 13 is used as a pushing station. In this portion, the cardboard carton 1 is pushed down as will be described later, so that the flap 1a opened to the outside causes the cardboard carton. It is designed to support 1. That is, a pair of upper and lower stoppers 1 that determine the position of the forward end of the cardboard carton 1 at the pushing station.
7 is provided, and one short piece flap 1a is inserted between these stoppers 17 and the end face of the cardboard carton 1 is abutted and stopped. A movable guide 18 on which the left and right long flaps 1a of the cardboard carton 1 stopped by the stopper 17 is placed is arranged so as to move back and forth toward the cardboard carton 1 by an actuator 19. Further, an upper guide 20 which sandwiches the long piece flap 1a on the movable guide 18 between the movable guide 18 and the upper guide 20 is attached to an actuator 21 so as to move back and forth in the same direction as the movable guide 18.

Next, the feeding mechanism B of the can 22 put in the cardboard carton 1 will be described. In this embodiment, the cans 22 are stacked in two stages in an upside-down state in a not-shown pre-process, and the chain conveyors that convey the inverted and two-staged cans 22 in four rows are conveyed. 23 are arranged along a direction orthogonal to the supply direction of the cardboard carton 1 and toward the pushing station. Guide plates 24 (see FIG. 6) that prevent the cans 22 from falling are provided on both left and right sides of the chain conveyor 23. Further, near the tip of the chain conveyor 23, a can pattern stopper 26 for stopping the forward movement of the cans 22 in each row is arranged by being pushed down by an actuator 25 such as an air cylinder.
This is shown in FIG. 6 where it abuts the leading can 22 of each row to stop its advancement. Since the can pattern stopper 26 stops the forward movement of the cans 22 in each row at the same time, a plate-like member having a length substantially equal to the width of the four rows of cans 22 is moved up and down by one actuator. It may be configured as.

The cardboard carton 1 described above is
The size is large enough to accommodate cans 22 of 4 columns and 3 rows that are stacked in two stages. For that reason, a group of cans 22 of 4 columns and 3 rows are forwardly fed from the cans 22 stopped by the can pattern stopper 26. A mechanism is provided. An example thereof is schematically shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, and a can stopper 27 is provided at a position lower than the can pattern stoppers 26 by a dimension corresponding to the diameter of the three cans 22. There is. The can stopper 27 is configured such that a lever 29 is moved up and down by an actuator 28 so that the pin 30 attached to the lower surface of the tip of the lever 29 is inserted into the gap between the cans 22 that are in contact with each other. Since the movement of the can 22 in the left-right direction is restricted by the guide plate 24, the pin 30
The can 22 is stopped from moving forward.

On the other hand, a rectangular frame-shaped movable table 32 is arranged below the four slide rails 31 for sliding the can 22 transferred from the chain conveyor 23. At the front end and the rear end of the movable table 32, three shaft-shaped pusher pins 33, which are respectively inserted into the gaps between the cans 22 that are in contact with each other, are provided upright, six in total. . The distance between the pusher pin 33 on the front end side and the pusher pin 33 on the rear end side is set to be sufficiently wider than the width of the cardboard carton 1 with the flap 1a opened. Wheels 34 are attached to the lower part of the movable base 32, and upper and lower two-stage rails 35 and 36 on which the wheels 34 are placed and travel are arranged in parallel with the sliding rail 31. The upper rail 35 of these rails 35, 36 has a length such that the wheels 34 are mounted when the movable base 32 starts to move forward from the backward end, and the wheels 34 are disengaged when the movable base 32 reaches the forward end. It is set.

Here, the retracted end of the movable table 32 is the position where the pusher pin 33 on the rear end side is inserted into the same gap between the cans 22 as the pin 30 of the can stopper 27 and the forward end is. This is the position where the cans 22 in four columns and three rows pushed by the pusher pins 33 on the rear end side are positioned in the pushing station. Further, the lower rail 36 is installed at a height at which the pusher pin 33 is lower than the sliding rail 31 when the movable table 32 is placed on the lower rail 36, and the length thereof is set to the same length as the upper rail 35. ing. A movable rail 37 is provided between the upper and lower rails 35 and 36 on which the wheel 34 is placed at the retreat end and the forward end of the movable table 32. The movable rail 37 is
The lifter 40 is attached to both ends of a lift plate 39 that is vertically moved by an actuator 38 such as an air cylinder. Since the lifter 40 has the wheel 34 on the rear end side of the movable table 32 at the forward end at the position of the wheel 34 on the front end side of the movable table 32 at the backward end, three lifters 40 are provided in front and rear. In other words, the movable table 32
Are configured to move back and forth the same distance as the distance between the front and rear pusher pins 33. The movable table 32 can be moved back and forth via a drive belt 41 fixed to the movable table 32.

At the above-mentioned pushing station, a group of four columns and three rows of cans 22 stacked in two stages are moved and positioned by the pusher pin 33 and the movable base 32, and upwardly, downwardly. A cardboard carton 1 having an opening is positioned and held. A pushing plate 43 that is vertically moved by an actuator 42 such as an air cylinder is disposed above the cardboard carton 1 held in this way, and the pushing plate 43 allows the cardboard carton 1 to descend. There is. That is, the pushing mechanism C is formed here.

Since the cardboard carton 1 has to be lowered straight with respect to the group of cans 22 in 4 columns and 3 rows, a carton guide rod 44 is provided to ensure such an operation. Carton guide rod 44
Are arranged so as to move up and down by an actuator (not shown) such as an air cylinder on both the left and right sides of the movable table 32 across the traveling area. At least one of each of the left and right of the carton guide rods 44 presses the inner side surface of the cardboard carton 1 to the outside to prevent displacement of the cardboard carton 1.

An example of this is shown in FIG. 8. A hollow shaft 47 is erected on an elevating plate 46 which is vertically moved by an actuator 45 such as an air cylinder, and a pin 48 is centered on the upper end of the hollow shaft 47. A rotatable tiltable shaft 49 is attached so as to project upward. Further, on the upper surface of the lift plate 46, levers 51 that are rotated by the mini actuator 50 are arranged on both left and right sides of the center of the hollow shaft 47, and the tip ends of the levers 51 and the tiltable shaft 49 are disposed.
The left and right sides of the base end portion of are connected by a wire 52. That is, one of the mini actuators 50
Is operated to pull the wire 52, the tiltable shaft 49 is tilted in the pulled direction.

The movable table 32 and the pusher pin 33 erected on the movable table 32 constitute a discharging and feeding mechanism D together with the can feeding mechanism C, and the group of cans 22 covered with the cardboard carton 1 are reversed by this. It is designed to be sent to mechanism E. The reversing mechanism E mainly includes a rectangular frame 53 that rotates about a horizontal axis and a motor 54 that rotates the rectangular frame 53, and the rectangular frame 53 is intermittent every 90 °. It can be rotated. Further, the four outer surfaces of the rectangular frame 53 are respectively formed with holding portions 55 for slidingly holding the cardboard carton 1 with the flap 1a opened outward. Each of the holding portions 55 is formed by bending a strip-shaped metal plate according to the outer diameter shape of the cardboard carton 1 and fixing it to the outer surface of the rectangular frame 53. The rectangular frame 53 is set so that the upper outer surface thereof is flush with the sliding surface of the group of cans 22 advanced by the discharging and feeding mechanism D in a state of rotating by 90 ° and stopped. ing.

Below the rectangular frame 53, as the discharging mechanism F, the holding portion 5 on the lower side of the rectangular frame 53 which is stopped.
A discharge cylinder 56 for pushing out the cardboard carton 1 from 5 is provided.

Next, the operation of the above-mentioned device will be described. The cardboard cartons 1 arranged in an upright state in a folded state are placed on a conveyor 2 and moved forward, and come into contact with claws 4 projecting from the left and right guide rails 3 to stop. The suction pad 6 moves forward with respect to the cardboard carton 1 to suck it, and then the suction pad 6 retracts, whereby the cardboard carton 1 is pulled out forward from the portion of the claw 4. In this case, the distance between the guide rails 3 becomes gradually narrower at the diagonal portion 3a formed on one side thereof,
The corrugated cardboard carton 1 is relatively crushed at its diagonal corners and opened into a rectangle.

A swing lever 7 arranged above the cardboard carton 1 which is pulled out to the flap folding station and opened in a rectangular shape acts, that is, the cardboard carton 1 swings from the outside to the inside. Lever 7
Swings, the one end flap 1b is bent inward. At the same time, the flap folding device (not shown) bends the lower flap 1a outward by approximately 90 °.

This cardboard carton 1 has a pusher 9
Is pushed to the side of the guide plate 8 and passes under the guide plate 8 so that the other short flap 1
B is bent inward by approximately 90 °. On the upper surface of each short piece flap 1b of the cardboard carton 1 that has passed under the guide plate 8, an adhesive is sprayed in a spot shape from an adhesive application device (not shown). Therefore, when the cardboard carton 1 passes under the further advanced upper guide 11, the long piece flap 1c is folded onto the short piece flap 1b by the upper guide 11, so that the long piece flap 1c overlaps the short piece flap 1b. Are glued together. That is, the box is opened downward.

Further, the cardboard carton 1 has its rear end face pushed by the bar 15 projected by the actuator 16 and advances along the side table 12 and the side guide 13, and its leading end face comes into contact with the stopper 17 to stop. . In that case, the upper guide 20 is retracted by the actuator 21 in order to avoid interference with the left and right long flaps 1a opened outward, and the upper guide 20 is stopped by the cardboard carton 1 abutting on the stopper 17. 20 is moved forward by the actuator 21, and the left and right long flaps 1a are inserted between the upper and lower guides 18, 20. That is, the cardboard carton 1 is positioned at the pushing station. The carton guide rod 44 moves up with respect to the thus positioned cardboard carton 1 to hold the cardboard carton 1. In that case, since the left and right tiltable shafts 49 are rotated outward by the Nimi actuator 50, the inner surface of the cardboard carton 1 is pushed outward, and thereby the cardboard carton 1 is positioned at a predetermined position.

On the other hand, the cans 22 are vertically inverted and stacked in two stages, and are continuously conveyed toward the pushing station by the chain conveyor 23 in a state of being aligned in four rows. Then, before the pushing station, the cans 22 are brought into close contact with each other and stopped by the can pattern stopper 26. In this state, the pin 30 is inserted from above into the gap on the rear side of the can 22 in the third row from the front. That is, the lever 29 is rotated by the actuator 28 and the pin 30 descends. Around this time, the movable table 32 was raised by the lifter 40, and the pusher pin 33 erected at the rear end of the movable table 32 was moved from the front to
It is inserted into the gap behind the can 22 in the row.

Then, the can pattern stopper 26 is pulled up by the actuator 25 and retracts from the front position of the can 22. When the can pattern stopper 26 is completely removed from the can 22, the movable table 32 is moved forward by the drive belt 41, and thus the movable table 32 travels on the upper rail 35 and moves to the pushing station side. That is, since the movable table 32 moves forward with the pusher pin 33 pushed up, the group of cans 22 on the front side thereof, that is, the cans 22 in 4 columns and 3 rows are pushed by the pusher pin 33 and pushed in the station. Be moved to. In that case, the pusher pins 33 are inserted between the cans 22 stacked in two steps and are off the center of the cans 22, but the left and right sides of the four rows of the cans 22 are in contact with the guide plates 24 and outward. Because movement of the can is regulated, the can 22
Can be advanced without disturbing the alignment. When the movable table 32 moves to the forward end and stops, the group of cans 22 opens downward and is positioned below the cardboard carton 1 held by the carton guide rod 44.

The movable table 32 has a movable rail 37 at its forward end.
The movable table 32 is lowered downward by lowering the lifter 40 in this state. Therefore, the pusher pin 33 pushing the group of cans 22 comes out downward. At the lower end position of the lifter 40, since the movable rail 37 is connected to the lower rail 36, the movable base 3
2 is moved backward along the lower rail 36 by the drive belt 41 operating in the direction opposite to that described above. At the retracted end, the movable rail 37 is mounted again, so that the lifter 40 is moved upward to move the movable table 3
The wheel 2 is lifted to a height at which its wheels 34 rest on the upper rail 35.

While the series of operations are performed in this manner, the succeeding can 22 is advanced to the position of the can pattern stopper 26. That is, when the movable table 32 moves to the forward end as described above, the can pattern stopper 26 is lowered by the actuator 25 to the pass line of the can 22,
Further, the pin 30 that has stopped the advance of the can 22 is pulled up, and therefore the can 22 advances until it comes into contact with the can pattern stopper 26 and is stopped.

When the movable table 32 which has returned to the backward end is lifted,
The pusher pin 33 provided upright on the rear end is stopped by the can pattern stopper 26. 4
A pusher pin 33, which is inserted from below into a gap on the rear side of the cans 22 in the third row from the top of the cans 22 in a row and is erected on the tip of the movable base 32, is positioned at the pushing station. Ascend to the rear end side of the group of cans 22.

The push-in mechanism C provided in the push-in station operates in tandem with the backward movement of the movable table 32 and the upward movement thereof again. That is, the push-in plate 43 is moved down by the actuator 42, and the carton guide rod 44 is also moved down together with this.
As a result, the cardboard carton 1 positioned above the group of cans 22 is pushed down to cover the group of cans 22 in four columns and three rows. In this case, the left and right movable guides 1
8 and the upper guide 20 correspond to the respective actuators 1
It is moved backward by 9, 21.

When the carton guide rod 44 is pulled downward from the cardboard carton 1 and the pushing plate 43 is raised to its original position, the movable table 32 is moved forward again. In this case, since the movable base 32 moves forward along the upper rail 35, the pusher pins 33 before and after the movable base 32 project onto the pass line of the can 22, and therefore the group of cans 22 covered with the cardboard carton 1 are movable. The pusher pin 33 provided upright on the tip of the table 32 pushes it toward the reversing mechanism E. Also in this case, the can pattern stopper 26 and the pin 30 operate in the same manner as described above, so that the following group of cans 22 of 4 columns and 3 rows are advanced to the pushing station.

The rectangular frame 53 in the reversing mechanism E is intermittently rotated by 90 ° and any one outer surface is set at the same height as the moving surface of the group of cans 22 covered with the cardboard carton 1. Therefore, the group of cans 22 advanced as the movable table 32 is moved forward has a rectangular frame 53.
Is pushed into the holding portion 55 located on the upper side. That is, the cardboard carton 1 closes its opening and is held by the holding portion 55 so as not to drop, and then the pusher pin 33 is lowered together with the movable table 32 to be pulled out from the cardboard carton 1, and then the rectangular frame 53.
Is rotated 90 ° by the motor 54.

Every time the rectangular frame 53 is rotated by 90 ° in this way, the series of operations described above are repeated, and as a result,
A group of cans 22 covering the cardboard carton 1 is inserted into each holding portion 55. Then, the cardboard carton 1 and the group of cans 22 that have been moved to the lower side by the rotation of the rectangular frame 53 are eventually rotated 180 ° and turned upside down. It is pushed out from the holding portion 55 by 56 and is placed on the subsequent conveying device (not shown).

Therefore, in the above-mentioned apparatus, a group of cans 22 stacked in two stages can be continuously boxed, and in particular, a group of cans 22 can be covered with the cardboard carton 1 from above. Therefore, it is possible to surely carry out box packaging without breaking the stacked state and the aligned state.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, an example in which two-tiered cans are used has been described, but the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and cans and three-tiered cans are not stacked. It is possible to target cans and the like that are stacked in a number of steps or more. In addition, the number of units to be accommodated as a group is
It is not limited to 4 columns and 3 rows.

[0040]

As described above, according to the apparatus of the present invention, the case having a predetermined number of cans is covered with the case opened downward, and the case is turned upside down. Even if the cans of which the outer diameter is the largest, such as food cans that are difficult to align or stack, can be automatically and surely boxed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a layout diagram schematically showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view schematically showing a mechanism for opening a cardboard carton into a rectangle.

FIG. 3 is a plan view schematically showing a mechanism for opening a cardboard carton into a rectangle.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view schematically showing a mechanism for closing the bottom of the cardboard carton of the case feeding mechanism.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a mechanism for moving a cardboard carton to a pushing station and a pushing mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view schematically showing a part of a can feeding mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view schematically showing another part of the can feed mechanism.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a retractable shaft in a carton guide rod.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Cardboard Carton 2 Conveyor 22 Can 23 Chain Conveyor 27 Can Stopper 32 Movable Stand 33 Pusher Pin 43 Pushing Plate 53 Rectangular Frame 55 Holding Part 56 Ejecting Cylinder A Case Feeding Mechanism C Pushing Mechanism D Ejecting Feeding Mechanism E Inversion Mechanism F discharge mechanism

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of cans (2) arranged in a matrix.
2) A can feed mechanism that moves forward as a group at a constant pitch
(B), the case (1) opened downward, the case feed mechanism (A) for conveying and positioning the case (1) above the group of cans (22) positioned at a predetermined position, and the group of cans ( The case (1) is positioned above the group of cans (2) by pushing down the case (1) toward the group of cans (22).
2) the pushing mechanism (C), the group of cans (22) and the case (1) that covers these cans (22) are united to the front in the feeding direction of the can feeding mechanism (B). The sending and discharging mechanism (D) and the reversing mechanism (which holds the case (1) sent by the discharging and sending mechanism (D) in a state where the opening is closed and cannot be dropped and rotates about the horizontal axis ( E) and the discharge mechanism (F) that sends the case (1) inverted by the reversing mechanism (E) so that the opening faces upward from the reversing mechanism (E) with the group of cans (22) housed therein. ) And a can caser.