WO2023276993A1 - Transfer device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a transfer device with which, even if an object to be conveyed is heavy, it is possible to transfer the same in a stable manner.　The present invention comprises: a main conveyor having a main-conveyance path and a main-conveyance cam follower; an auxiliary conveyor having an auxiliary-conveyance path and an auxiliary-conveyance cam follower; and a lifting mechanism. The main-conveyance path and the auxiliary-conveyance path overlap partially or entirely in plan view. The lifting mechanism comprises a first horizontal movement member having a first linear-motion cam, a second horizontal movement member having a second linear-motion cam, and a drive source. By operating the drive source, it is possible to perform a position change operation in which the main-conveyance cam follower travels on the first linear-motion cam, the auxiliary-conveyance cam follower travels on the second linear-motion cam, and one of the main-conveyance path and the auxiliary-conveyance path rises, with the other dropping down. Rotary shafts of the main-conveyance cam follower and the auxiliary-conveyance cam follower are configured so as to have a portion of overlap with the auxiliary-conveyance cam follower on a projected plane in the vertical direction during the position change operation.

Description

Transfer device

The present invention relates to a transfer device that transfers objects in multiple directions.

Conventionally, in product assembly plants and product delivery sites, a plurality of conveyor lines have been installed for transporting products (goods to be conveyed). A transfer device is arranged to allow the load to be placed (for example, Patent Literature 1).
In the transfer device of Patent Document 1, a main transport path for transporting to the downstream side of the main transport conveyor line and a sub-transport path for transporting to the sub-transport conveyor line are arranged to overlap each other in a certain plane area. When conveying from the line to the sub-conveyance conveyor line, the sub-conveyance path is lifted above the main conveyance path by the elevating means to transfer from the main conveyance path to the sub-conveyance path, and the sub-conveyance is performed by the sub-conveyance path. It can be transported to a conveyor line.

Japanese Patent No. 6706745

However, in the transfer device of Patent Document 1, when the main conveying path is changed to the sub-conveying path, as shown in FIG. 36, 36 are placed on the high position portions 7a, 7b of the horizontally moving member, and the main conveyer portion is biased to one side (the right side in FIG. 13(a)) in the conveying direction of the sub-conveying path. It is supported on a cantilever, and a space S1 is formed below the other side (left side in FIG. 13(a)).
Therefore, if a heavy object is placed unevenly on the other side (left side in FIG. 13(a)) of the main conveyor section, the main conveyor section may lose its balance and tilt.

Further, in the transfer device of Patent Document 1, even when the sub-conveyance path is changed to the main conveyance path, as shown in FIG. The cam followers 27, 27 are placed on the high position portions 7a, 7b of the horizontal movement member, and the sub-conveyor portion is biased to the other side (left side in FIG. 13(b)) in the conveying direction of the sub-conveying path. 13(b), and a space S2 is formed below one side (the right side in FIG. 13(b)).
Therefore, if a heavy object is placed unevenly on one side of the sub-conveyor section (the right side in FIG. 13(b)), the sub-conveyor section may lose its balance and tilt.

As described above, the transfer device of Patent Document 1 has a concern that the conveyor portion may tilt when the article is heavy, and there is room for further improvement.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a transfer device that can stably transfer even heavy objects to be conveyed.

In order to solve the above problems, the present inventors have studied measures to prevent tilting of the main conveyor section and the sub-conveyor section in the transfer apparatus of Patent Document 1. FIG.
That is, in order to prevent the tilting of the main conveyer portion and the sub-conveyor portion in the transfer apparatus of Patent Document 1, the cam followers 36, 36, 27, and 27 are provided at positions where a part or all of them overlap, and as much as possible It is preferable to place them closer to both ends. However, in the transfer device of Patent Document 1, since the cam follower 36 of the main conveyer portion and the cam follower 27 of the sub conveyer portion are respectively placed on one horizontal moving member 11, the cam followers 36 and 27 overlap each other. cannot be placed in position.
Therefore, the present inventor separately arranged the cam follower 36 of the main conveying conveyor section and the cam follower 27 of the sub conveying conveyer section as separate horizontal movement members, and arranged the rotation shaft of the cam follower 36 and the rotation shaft of the cam follower 27 as horizontal movement members. In the moving direction of , it is possible to suppress the inclination of the main conveyor section and the sub-conveyor section even when a heavy object is transferred.

One aspect of the present invention derived from the above idea has a main conveyor section, a sub-conveyor section, and an elevating mechanism, and the main conveyor section conveys an object in a predetermined direction. and a main conveying cam follower portion, and the sub conveying conveyor portion has a sub conveying path for conveying the conveyed article in a direction crossing the conveying direction of the main conveying passage and a sub conveying cam follower portion. , the main transport path and the sub-transport path partially or entirely overlap when viewed from above, and the elevating mechanism includes a first horizontal movement member, a second horizontal movement member, and a second horizontal movement member. A drive source for horizontally moving a first horizontal movement member and the second horizontal movement member is provided, the first horizontal movement member has a first translational cam portion, and the second horizontal movement member moves the By driving the drive source, the main conveying cam follower section runs on the first direct acting cam section, and the sub conveying cam follower section runs on the second direct acting cam section. to move one of the main transport path and the sub-transport path upward and the other transport path downward. In the transfer device, there is an overlapping portion with the sub-conveyance cam follower section on a projection plane in the vertical direction when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main conveyance cam follower section in operation.

According to this aspect, the main conveying cam follower portion and the sub-conveying cam follower portion are arranged on separate first and second horizontal moving members, respectively, and the main conveying cam follower portion and the sub-conveying cam follower portion are arranged on the main conveying cam follower portion. When viewed from the rotation axis direction, they are arranged so as to partially or wholly overlap in the vertical direction during the attitude change operation. Therefore, in the attitude change operation, the support position of the main conveyor and the support position of the sub-conveyor are always constant, so that the objects to be conveyed are less likely to tilt, and even heavy objects can be stably transferred.
According to this aspect, the main carrier cam follower and the sub carrier cam follower are arranged so as to overlap partially or wholly in the vertical direction when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main carrier cam follower during the attitude change operation. It is possible to shorten the traveling distance of the main conveying cam follower portion on the first direct acting cam portion and the traveling distance of the sub conveying cam follower portion on the second direct acting cam portion, which are required for the above, compared to the main conveying cam follower portion in Patent Document 1. And a sub-conveyance cam follower portion can be provided on the end portion side.

In a preferred aspect, the rotation axis of the main transport cam follower portion and the rotation axis of the sub-transport cam follower portion are substantially aligned vertically when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main transport cam follower portion during the posture changing operation. It is that you are.

Here, "substantially aligned in the vertical direction" refers to the state of being aligned on a straight line in the vertical direction, and refers to being within 1 cm in the horizontal direction with respect to the reference axis extending in the vertical direction. .
That is, "the rotation axis of the main transfer cam follower portion and the rotation axis of the sub-transfer cam follower portion are substantially aligned in the vertical direction" means that the sub-transfer cam follower portion is aligned with the vertical axis passing through the rotation axis of the main transfer cam follower portion. It means that the distance between the axes of rotation is within 1 cm.

According to this aspect, in the attitude change operation, the support position of the main conveyor and the support position of the sub-conveyor are generally constant, and the objects to be conveyed are less likely to tilt, and even if the objects to be conveyed are heavy, they are stable. can be transferred.

In a preferred aspect, the first horizontal movement member is fixed to the second horizontal movement member directly or via a connection member, and the first horizontal movement member and the second horizontal movement member are fixed to the posture In the change operation, it is to move horizontally together.

According to this aspect, since the first horizontally moving member and the second horizontally moving member are integrally fixed, the first horizontally moving member and the second horizontally moving member can be simultaneously moved by one drive source. , can reduce costs.

In a preferred aspect, the first direct acting cam portion has a first high portion and a first low portion, and the second direct acting cam portion has a second high portion and a second low portion. , the second high position portion is positioned above the first low position portion and the first high position portion is positioned above the second low position portion when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main conveying cam follower portion. The location part is located.

According to this aspect, the traveling distance of the main conveying cam follower section on the first direct acting cam section and the traveling distance of the sub conveying cam follower section on the second direct acting cam section can be further shortened.

A more preferable aspect is that the second high portion is provided at the end of the second horizontally moving member in the moving direction of the second horizontally moving member.

According to this aspect, it can be raised and lowered more stably.

In a preferred aspect, the first horizontally moving member has a first rack portion, the second horizontally moving member has a second rack portion, and the driving source includes the first rack portion and the second rack portion. It is provided with each of the rack sections and a pinion section that constitutes a rack and pinion mechanism, and a motor that rotates the pinion section.

According to this aspect, the rotational force of the motor can be more reliably converted into the moving force of the first horizontal movement member and the second horizontal movement member.

In a preferred aspect, the sub-conveyance conveyor section is a roller conveyor in which a plurality of sub-conveyance rollers are arranged in the conveyance direction of the sub-conveyance path, and the main conveyance conveyor section has a plurality of main conveyance rollers, The main conveying roller rises from between the sub-conveying rollers adjacent in the conveying direction of the conveying path.

According to this aspect, the size of the planar area can be reduced, and the overall device can be made compact.

In a preferred aspect, the posture changing operation is performed by changing the main transporting posture in which the main transporting path is positioned higher than the sub-transporting path so that the article can be transported on the main transporting path, and The sub-conveyance posture is changed between the sub-conveyance posture which is positioned higher than the conveyance path and can convey the article on the sub-conveyance route. When changing from the main conveyance posture to the sub-conveyance posture, The rotating shaft of the main conveying cam follower portion descends from a position higher than the rotating shaft of the sub-conveying cam follower portion, passes through a position at the same height as the rotating shaft of the sub-conveying cam follower portion, and passes through the rotating shaft of the sub-conveying cam follower portion. It is to be in a lower position than

According to this aspect, it is possible to transfer objects more stably.

By the way, in the main conveyer portion of Patent Document 1, the rotational force of the belt driving roller is transmitted to the short roller via the belt, and the short roller rotates, thereby conveying the conveyed object.
However, in the main conveyer section of Patent Document 1, although tension is applied to the belt by the pulleys, there is a problem that if a slip occurs between the short roller and the belt, part of the rotational force is lost.
In order to efficiently transmit the driving force of the motor of the driving roller to the roller, it is conceivable to transmit it by a gear mechanism that does not cause slip. By doing so, the power can be transmitted more efficiently than when the driving roller and the short roller are interlocked with a belt.
However, when the main conveying path and the sub-conveying path are moved up and down relative to each other as in Patent Document 1, if the short roller and the driving roller are interlocked by the gear mechanism, the gear on the side of the short roller moves along with the rise of the main conveying path. When the gear portion on the side of the short roller and the gear portion on the drive roller side are separated completely, even if the main transport path descends again, the gear portion on the side of the short roller part and the gear part on the drive roller side may not mesh.

Therefore, in a preferred aspect, the posture changing operation is performed by: A sub-conveying position that is positioned higher than the main conveying path and capable of conveying the article on the sub-conveying path, and has a main conveying drive motor having a drive-side gear portion. The main conveying conveyor section has a plurality of main conveying rollers and a conveyor-side gear section that interlocks with the main conveying rollers. Although the addendum circle of the side gear part is inside, the pitch circle of the driving side gear part and the pitch circle of the conveyor side gear part are separated, and the attitude is changed from the sub-conveying attitude to the main conveying attitude. The pitch circle of the drive-side gear portion and the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion approach each other.

According to this aspect, since the main transport roller and the main transport drive motor are interlocked by the gear mechanism, the power of the main transport drive motor can be transmitted to the main transport roller more efficiently.
According to this aspect, the conveyor-side gear portion and the drive-side gear portion are always meshed with each other as the posture is changed from the sub-conveyance posture to the main-conveyance posture. You can change your posture more stably.

A more preferable aspect is that the addendum circle of the drive-side gear portion enters the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion in the main conveying posture.

According to this aspect, in the main transport posture, the power of the main transport drive motor can be transmitted to the main transport rollers more efficiently.

A more preferable aspect is that the addendum circle of the drive-side gear portion is separated from the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion in the sub-conveyance posture.

In a more preferred aspect, the main conveying roller has a roller-side gear portion, and the main conveying conveyor portion meshes with the roller-side gear portion to move between the main conveying rollers adjacent in the conveying direction of the main conveying path. It has an inter-roller interlocking gear portion for interlocking, and the inter-roller interlocking gear portion is meshed with the conveyor-side gear portion.

According to this aspect, since power is transmitted from the driving side gear section to the roller side gear section via the inter-roller interlocking gear section, power can be transmitted more stably from the driving side gear section to the roller side gear section.

One aspect of the present invention includes a main conveyor section, a sub-conveyor section, and an elevating mechanism, the main conveyor section having a main conveying path for conveying an object in a predetermined direction, The sub-conveyor section has a sub-conveyance path for conveying the article in a direction crossing the conveying direction of the main conveyance path, and the main conveyance path and the sub-conveyance path are part of an area when viewed from above. a main transport posture in which the main transport path is positioned higher than the sub transport path so that the article can be transported on the main transport path; and a sub-conveyance driving motor having a drive-side gear portion capable of performing a posture change operation to change between a sub-conveyance posture at a position higher than the sub-conveyance path and capable of conveying the conveyed article on the sub-conveyance path. The main conveying conveyor section has a plurality of main conveying rollers and a conveyor-side gear section that interlocks with the main conveying rollers. Although the addendum circle of the conveyor-side gear part is inside, the pitch circle of the drive-side gear part and the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear part are separated, and the attitude is changed from the sub-conveying attitude to the main conveying attitude. In the transfer device, the pitch circle of the drive-side gear portion and the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion approach each other.

According to this aspect, since the main transport roller and the main transport drive motor are interlocked by the gear mechanism, the power of the main transport drive motor can be transmitted to the main transport roller more efficiently.
According to this aspect, the conveyor-side gear portion and the drive-side gear portion are always meshed with each other as the posture is changed from the sub-conveyance posture to the main-conveyance posture. You can change your posture more stably.

According to the transfer device of the present invention, even heavy objects can be transferred stably.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a perspective view of a conveyor line provided with the transfer apparatus of 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the transfer device of FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the transfer device of FIG. 2; 4 is an exploded perspective view of the main transport conveyor section of FIG. 3; FIG. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the roller unit of FIG. 4; FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the sub-conveyor portion of FIG. 3; 4 is an exploded perspective view of the base portion of FIG. 3; FIG. Figure 8 is an exploded perspective view of the guide member of Figure 7; 3 is an explanatory diagram of the transfer device in the main transport posture of FIG. 2, (a) is a side view showing the state of the main transport conveyor section, (b) is a side view showing the state of the sub-transport conveyor section, (c) is a side view showing the state of the base portion. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the transfer device in an intermediate posture in the middle of changing from the main transport posture to the sub-transport posture of FIG. It is a side view showing the state of a conveyor part, (c) is a side view showing the state of a base part. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the transfer device in the sub-conveyance posture of FIG. 2, (a) is a side view showing the state of the main conveyer section, and (b) is a side view showing the state of the sub-conveyor section; (c) is a side view showing the state of the base portion. 3A is a side view showing the positional relationship between a conveyor-side gear portion and a drive-side gear portion in a main transport posture, and FIG. It is a side view which shows the positional relationship of a conveyor side gear part and a drive side gear part. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the transfer apparatus of Patent Document 1, in which (a) is a diagram obtained by processing FIG. 7(c) to express space, and (b) is a diagram obtained by adding processing to express space to FIG. 8(c); It is a diagram.

The transfer device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described below.

The transfer apparatus 1 of the first embodiment of the present invention is suitable for use in automated warehouses, distribution centers, etc. As shown in FIG. It is provided at a branch portion to the transport conveyor line 202 .
In the following description, for convenience of explanation, the upstream side of the main transport conveyor line 201 will be referred to as the upstream conveyor line 203, and the downstream side of the main transport conveyor line 201 will be referred to as the downstream conveyor line 205, with reference to the transfer device 1. .

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the transfer device 1 includes a main conveyor section 2, a sub-conveyor section 3, a base section 5, a drive source 6 for transfer, and a drive source 7 for change. .
By driving the changing drive source 7, the transfer device 1 can perform an attitude change operation of changing the attitude between the main transport attitude and the sub-transport attitude.
As shown in FIG. 9, the main conveying posture is such that the main conveying path 27 of the main conveyor section 2 rises and the sub-conveying path 43 of the sub-conveying conveyor section 3 descends so that the main conveying path 27 is higher than the sub-conveying path 43. It is in a position where the article 200 can be transported on the main transport path 27 .
As for the sub-conveying attitude, as shown in FIG. This is a posture in which the article 200 can be conveyed on the sub-conveyance path 43 at a high position.

The main transport conveyor section 2 is a conveyor unit that transports the article 200 transported from the upstream conveyor line 203 to the downstream conveyor line 205 .
As shown in FIG. 4, the main transport conveyor section 2 includes a plurality of roller units 10a and 10b, connecting frames 11a and 11b, and regulation plates 12a to 12d.
The roller units 10a and 10b are long members that have a width in the vertical direction Y (horizontal direction) and extend in the horizontal direction X (horizontal direction) when viewed from above, and convey the article 200 in the horizontal direction X. It is something to do.
The roller units 10a and 10b include a support frame 20, main transport rollers 21a to 21e, inter-roller interlocking gear portions 22a to 22d, and a conveyor side gear portion 23, as shown in FIG.
4 and 5, the support frame 20 is a member that supports the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e, inter-roller interlocking gears 22a to 22d, and conveyor-side gear 23, and is elongated in the horizontal direction X. is a frame.
The support frame 20 is composed of a pair of frame bodies 24a and 24b.

The main conveying rollers 21a to 21e are conveying rollers for conveying the article 200, arranged side by side in the lateral direction X, and supported by a pair of frame main bodies 24a and 24b.
As shown in FIG. 5, the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e are provided with a roller portion 25 and a roller-side gear portion 26, and the top portion of the roller portion 25 forms a conveying surface. A main conveying path 27 capable of conveying an article 200 is formed by the conveying surfaces of the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e.
The main transport path 27 transports the articles 200 in the transport direction of the main transport conveyor line 201 . That is, the main conveying path 27 linearly conveys from the upstream conveyor line 203 toward the downstream conveyor line 205 .

In the main transport rollers 21a to 21e, the roller portion 25 and the roller-side gear portion 26 are coaxial.
The roller portion 25 has an outer diameter larger than that of the roller-side gear portion 26 as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, the inter-roller interlocking gear portions 22a to 22d are provided between the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e, respectively, and are pivotally supported between a pair of frame bodies 24a and 24b. That is, the inter-roller interlocking gear portions 22a to 22d are arranged side by side in the horizontal direction X. As shown in FIG.
The inter-roller interlocking gear portions 22a-22d mesh with the roller-side gear portions 26 of the main transport rollers 21a-21e, and interlock the roller-side gear portions 26, 26 of the main transport rollers 21a-21e adjacent in the horizontal direction X. It is a part.
The conveyor-side gear portion 23 is a portion that meshes with the inter-roller interlocking gear portion 22b, and is pivotally supported between a pair of frame main bodies 24a and 24b.

The connection frames 11a and 11b are frames that extend in the vertical direction Y and connect the roller units 10a and 10b, and as shown in FIG.
The main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b are rollers having a rotating shaft parallel to the rotating shafts of the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e.
The main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b are arranged below the connecting frames 11a and 11b and inside the connecting frames 11a and 11b. is provided in
Looking at the main conveyer section 2 as a whole, the main conveyer section 2 is provided with four main conveyer cam follower sections 30a, 30b, 30a and 30b. located nearby.

The regulating plates 12a to 12d are members for regulating the moving direction of the main conveyor section 2 only in the vertical direction. That is, the regulating plates 12a to 12d are capable of linearly moving the main conveyor section 2 up and down in the vertical direction.
The regulating plates 12a-12d are provided on the lower surfaces of the connecting frames 11a and 11b.
The regulating plates 12a to 12d are provided at both ends of the main transport rollers 21a to 21e of the connecting frames 11a and 11b in the direction (horizontal direction X), respectively, when viewed from above. It is positioned inside of 10a and 10b.
The regulating plates 12a to 12d are leaf springs that have elasticity, are easy to bend in the thickness direction, and are hard to twist. As shown in FIG. 3, the regulation plates 12a to 12d extend obliquely from the connecting frames 11a and 11b so that the thickness direction faces the vertical direction, and are attached to the connecting frames 11a and 11b in a cantilever manner. there is

The sub-transport conveyor section 3 is a conveyor unit that transports the article 200 transported from the upstream conveyor line 203 to the sub-transport conveyor line 202 .
As shown in FIG. 6, the sub-conveying conveyor section 3 includes a frame member 40, sub-conveying rollers 41a to 41h, and regulating plates 42a to 42d. Conveyor.
The sub-conveyor conveyor section 3 has a conveying surface formed by the top portions of the sub-conveying rollers 41a to 41h, and the conveying surface forms a sub-conveying path 43 capable of conveying the article 200. As shown in FIG.
The sub-conveyance path 43 conveys the article 200 in a crossing direction (perpendicular direction in this embodiment) to the conveying direction (first conveying direction) of the main conveying path 27 of the main conveyer section 2 .
The frame member 40 includes a pair of support frames 45a, 45b and connecting frames 46a, 46b, as shown in FIG.
The support frames 45a and 45b are support members that extend in the vertical direction Y and pivotally support both ends of the sub-conveyance rollers 41a to 41h in the longitudinal direction.

The connecting frames 46a and 46b are connecting members that extend in the lateral direction X and connect end portions of the support frames 45a and 45b.
The connecting frames 46a and 46b are provided with sub-conveyance cam follower portions 50a and 50b.
The sub-conveyance cam follower portions 50a and 50b are rollers having a rotation axis parallel to the rotation axis of the main conveyance cam follower portions 30a and 30b.
The sub-conveyance cam follower portions 50a and 50b are arranged below the connecting frames 46a and 46b and inside the connecting frames 46a and 46b, and are arranged at both ends in the longitudinal direction (horizontal direction X) of the connecting frames 46a and 46b. located nearby.
Looking at the sub-conveyance conveyor section 3 as a whole, the sub-conveyance conveyor section 3 includes four sub-conveyance cam follower sections 50a, 50b, 50a, and 50b. located nearby.

As shown in FIG. 6, the sub-conveying rollers 41a to 41h are rotatably supported by supporting frames 45a and 45b, and are spaced apart from each other in the conveying direction (second conveying direction) of the sub-conveying path 43. They are lined up vacantly.
One or more sub-conveyance rollers among the sub-conveyance rollers 41a to 41h are motor-incorporating rollers, and a motor and a speed reducer are incorporated in the roller body. The sub-conveying roller is rotatable by supplying power to a motor.
On the other hand, among the sub-conveying rollers 41a to 41h, the remaining sub-conveying rollers are driven rollers, and the belt 48 is suspended between them and the motor-incorporating rollers. It is rotatable.
In the present embodiment, the sub-conveying roller 41e is a driving roller and incorporates a motor-incorporating roller. is.
Any of the sub-conveying rollers 41a to 41h may be motorized rollers.

The regulating plates 42a to 42d are members for regulating the moving direction of the sub-conveyor section 3 only in the vertical direction. That is, the regulating plates 42a to 42d are capable of linearly raising and lowering the sub-conveyor section 3 in the vertical direction.
The regulation plates 42a to 42d are provided on the lower surfaces of the support frames 45a and 45b as shown in FIG.
The regulating plates 42a to 42d are provided at intermediate portions of the support frames 45a and 45b in the direction (vertical direction Y) in which the sub-conveying rollers 41a to 41h are arranged side by side.
The regulating plates 42a to 42d are plate springs that have elasticity, are easily bent in the thickness direction, and are difficult to twist. The regulation plates 42a to 42d extend obliquely from the support frames 45a and 45b so that the thickness direction faces the vertical direction, and are attached to the support frames 45a and 45b in a cantilever manner.

As shown in FIG. 7, the base portion 5 includes a base body portion 60, guide members 61a and 61b, and support members 62a and 62b.
The base main body 60 is a part to be placed on the ground (installation surface), and is a vertically long rectangular plate.
The guiding members 61a and 61b are elongated bodies having a width in the vertical direction Y and extending in the horizontal direction X, and are members for guiding the main conveyor section 2 and the sub-conveyor section 3 in the vertical direction.
As shown in FIG. 8, the guiding members 61a and 61b include a first horizontally moving member 65, a second horizontally moving member 66, a connecting member 67, and a guiding roller 68. Two horizontal moving members 66 are integrated with a connecting member 67 interposed therebetween.

The first horizontal movement member 65 is a long plate having a thickness in the vertical direction Y and a long plate extending in the horizontal direction X, and is capable of reciprocating movement only in the extension direction (horizontal direction X).
The first horizontal movement member 65 includes first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b and a first rack portion 71, as shown in FIG.

The first direct-acting cam portions 70 a and 70 b are portions that function as direct-acting cams and are provided on the upper surface of the first horizontal movement member 65 .
The first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b have first high position portions 75a and 75b and first low position portions 76a and 76b in the longitudinal direction (lateral direction X).
The first high position portions 75 a and 75 b are the highest portions on the upper surface of the first horizontal movement member 65 .
The first low position portions 76a and 76b are portions of the upper surface of the first horizontally moving member 65 that are lower than the first high position portions 75a and 75b.
A first low position portion 76a of the first direct acting cam portion 70a and a first high position portion 75b of the first direct acting cam portion 70b are formed at both ends of the first horizontal movement member 65 in the longitudinal direction (horizontal direction X). ing.

As shown in FIG. 7, the first rack portion 71 is a portion that engages with a pinion portion 96a of a changing drive source 7, which will be described later, and constitutes a rack and pinion mechanism.
As shown in FIG. 8, the first rack portion 71 is provided at an intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction (horizontal direction X) of the first horizontally moving member 65, and has a plurality of rack teeth.

The second horizontal movement member 66 is a long plate having a thickness in the vertical direction Y and a long plate extending in the horizontal direction X, and is capable of reciprocating movement only in the extension direction (horizontal direction X).
The second horizontal movement member 66 includes second direct acting cam portions 80a and 80b and a second rack portion 81, as shown in FIG.

The second direct-acting cam portions 80 a and 80 b are portions that function as direct-acting cams and are provided on the upper surface of the second horizontal movement member 66 .
The second direct-acting cam portions 80a, 80b have a shape different from that of the first direct-acting cam portions 70a, 70b of the first horizontal movement member 65. The second high position portions 85a, 85b and the second low position It has portions 86a and 86b.
The second high position portions 85 a and 85 b are the highest portions on the upper surface of the second horizontally moving member 66 .
The second low position portions 86a and 86b are portions of the upper surface of the second horizontally moving member 66 that are lower than the second high position portions 85a and 85b.
A second high position portion 85a of the second direct acting cam portion 80a and a second low position portion 86b of the second direct acting cam portion 80b are formed at both ends of the second horizontal movement member 66 in the longitudinal direction (lateral direction X). ing.

As shown in FIG. 7, the second rack portion 81 is a portion that engages with a pinion portion 96b of a changing drive source 7, which will be described later, and constitutes a rack and pinion mechanism.
As shown in FIG. 8, the second rack portion 81 is provided at an intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction (horizontal direction X) of the second horizontally moving member 66, and has a plurality of rack teeth.
The rack teeth of the second rack portion 81 have the same shape as the rack teeth of the first rack portion 71 .

The connection member 67 is a member that connects the first horizontal movement member 65 and the second horizontal movement member 66 , and is sandwiched between the first horizontal movement member 65 and the second horizontal movement member 66 to connect the first horizontal movement member 65 to the connection member 67 . and the second horizontally moving member 66 .

The guide rollers 68 are rollers that guide the guide members 61a and 61b in the lateral direction X, and the guide members 61a and 61b of this embodiment are provided with four guide rollers 68 each.

As shown in FIG. 7, the support members 62a and 62b are attached to the base body 60 and support the motorized roller 90 of the drive source 6 for conveyance and the geared motor 95 of the drive source 7 for change.
The support members 62a and 62b are provided on the outer sides of the guide members 61a and 61b in the longitudinal direction Y, and also serve as restricting members that restrict outward movement of the guide members 61a and 61b.

As shown in FIG. 7, the transport drive source 6 includes a motor-embedded roller 90 (main transport drive motor) and driving gears 91a and 91b.
The motorized roller 90 has a motor and a speed reducer built in the roller body, and the roller body is rotatable by supplying power to the motor.
The driving side gear portions 91a and 91b are attached to the outer periphery of the roller body of the motor-incorporating roller 90, and are portions that transmit the rotational force of the motor-incorporating roller 90 to the conveyor-side gear portion 23. As shown in FIG.

The changing drive source 7 includes a geared motor 95 and pinion portions 96a, 96b, 96a, 96b.
The geared motor 95 includes a motor and a speed reducer, and the output shaft is rotatable by supplying power to the motor.
The pinion portions 96a and 96b are attached to a power transmission shaft that is directly or indirectly connected to the output shaft of the geared motor 95, and engage with the rack portions 71 and 81 to form a rack and pinion mechanism. It is a member that transmits the rotational force of 95 to the horizontally moving members 65 and 66 .

Next, the positional relationship of each member in the main transport posture of the transfer device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the transfer device 1 has a base portion 5, a main conveyor portion 2, and a sub-conveyor portion 3 arranged in one plane area 100. The base portion 5, the main conveyor portion 2, and the sub-conveyor portion 3 overlap in this order toward the upper side.
As shown in FIG. 2, the roller units 10a and 10b of the main conveyor section 2 are configured such that the roller sections 25 of the main conveyor rollers 21a to 21e are positioned between the sub-conveyance rollers 41a and 41b of the sub-conveyor conveyor section 3 and between the sub-conveyance rollers 41g and 41g. It is exposed from between 41h.

The transfer device 1 moves the main conveyer section by means of the main conveying cam follower sections 30a and 30b, the first direct acting cam sections 70a and 70b of the first horizontally moving member 65, the sub conveying cam follower sections 50a and 50b and the second horizontally moving member 66. 2 and the sub-conveyor section 3 are configured.
As shown in FIG. 9, the main conveyer section 2 is positioned such that the main conveying path 27 formed by the tops of the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e is higher than the sub-conveying path 43 formed by the tops of the sub-conveying rollers 41a to 41h. It's becoming
As shown in FIG. 9A, the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b are placed on the first high position portions 75a and 75b of the first horizontally moving member 65, and the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b As shown in FIG. 9B, it is placed on the second low position portions 86a and 86b of the second horizontally moving member 66. As shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 9C, the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b are located above the sub-conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b when viewed from the side in the vertical direction Y, and the rotation shafts of the sub-conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b are aligned vertically with the axis of rotation of the

The regulation plates 12a to 12d have one end fixed to the connecting frames 11a and 11b and the other end fixed to the base portion 5. As shown in FIG.
The thickness directions of the regulation plates 12a to 12d are all oriented in the vertical direction.
That is, the moving direction of the main transport conveyor section 2 is regulated in the vertical direction by the regulating plates 12a to 12d.

The regulation plates 42a to 42d have one end fixed to the support frames 45a and 45b and the other end fixed to the base portion 5. As shown in FIG.
The thickness directions of the regulation plates 42a to 42d are all oriented in the vertical direction.
That is, the moving direction of the sub-conveyor section 3 is regulated in the vertical direction by the regulating plates 42a to 42d.

As shown in FIG. 9(a), the drive source 6 for transportation has driving side gear portions 91a and 91b meshing with the conveyor side gear portion 23 of the main transportation conveyor portion 2, and the rotational force of the motor built-in roller 90 is transferred to the conveyor. It can be transmitted to the side gear portion 23 .
Specifically, the addendum circles C1 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b enter the addendum circle C2 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23 as shown in FIG. It is also inside the pitch circle C4.
The pitch circle C3 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b is inside the addendum circle C2 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23, and is in contact with or close to the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23.
That is, the addendum circle C1 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b is located closer to the center of the conveyor-side gear portion 23 than the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23, and the addendum circle of the conveyor-side gear portion 23 C2 is located closer to the center of the drive side gear portions 91a and 91b than the pitch circle C3 of the drive side gear portions 91a and 91b.
9, pinion portions 96a and 96b of the changing drive source 7 are meshed with the rack portions 71 and 81 so that the rotational force of the geared motor 95 can be transmitted to the rack portions 71 and 81. As shown in FIG.

Next, a case will be described in which the transfer apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention changes the attitude from the main transport attitude to the sub-transport attitude and transports from the main transport conveyor line 201 to the sub-transport conveyor line 202 .

When the article 200 passes through the upstream conveyor line 203 and reaches the plane area 100 where the transfer device 1 is arranged, the geared motor 95 of the changing drive source 7 is rotated forward to rotate the pinion portions 96a and 96b and the rack portion 71. , 81 to move the guiding members 61a and 61b in one direction in the extending direction (lateral direction X).
As shown in FIG. 10(a), as the guiding members 61a and 61b move, the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b run on the first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b, and the first horizontal moving member 65 moves toward the first horizontal moving member 65. As shown in FIG. It moves from above the first high position portions 75a and 75b toward above the first low position portions 76a and 76b.
Similarly, as shown in FIG. 10(b), as the guide members 61a and 61b move, the sub-conveyance cam follower portions 50a and 50b run on the second direct acting cam portions 80a and 80b, and the second horizontal moving member 66 moves. from the second low position portions 86a, 86b toward the second high position portions 85a, 85b.

At this time, as the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b run on the first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b, the main conveying conveyor portion 2 descends, and the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b move toward the second direct acting cam portions 80a and 70b. As it travels on 80b, the sub-conveyor section 3 rises. In addition, the rotation shafts of the main transport cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the rotation shafts of the sub-transport cam follower portions 50a and 50b move up and down in the horizontal direction X while maintaining a constant position.

As the guide members 61a and 61b move, the conveyer sections 2 and 3 move up and down, and as shown in FIG. When the height is reached, the article 200 is transferred from the main conveying path 27 of the main conveying conveyor section 2 to the sub conveying path 43 of the sub conveying conveyor section 3, the main conveying conveyor section 2 further descends, and the article 200 moves to the sub conveying conveyor section 2. Part 3 rises further.

As shown in FIG. 12, the driving source 6 for transportation moves the pitch circle C3 of the drive gears 91a and 91b away from the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor gear 23 as the posture is changed from the main transportation posture to the sub-transportation posture. To go.

Then, when the transfer device 1 assumes the sub-conveyance attitude, the sub-conveyance path 43 of the sub-conveyor section 3 conveys the article 200 to the sub-conveyor line 202 .

At this time, as shown in FIG. 11(c), the sub-conveyance conveyor section 3 has a sub-conveyance path 43 formed by the tops of the sub-conveyance rollers 41a to 41h, and the main conveyance path 43 formed by the tops of the main conveyance rollers 21a to 21e. The position is higher than the road 27 .
As shown in FIG. 11A, the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b are placed on the first low position portions 76a and 76b of the first horizontal moving member 65, and the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b As shown in FIG. 11(b), it is placed on the second high position portions 85a and 85b of the second horizontally moving member 66. As shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 11C, the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b are located below the sub-conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b when viewed from the side in the vertical direction Y. are aligned vertically with the axis of rotation of the
As shown in FIG. 11(a), the driving source 6 for transportation has drive side gear portions 91a and 91b meshing with the conveyor side gear portion 23 of the main transportation conveyor portion 2. The gear portions 91a, 91b and the conveyor-side gear portion 23 are separated from each other.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. It is in contact with the pitch circle C4 or located outside the pitch circle C4.
The pitch circles C3 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b are located outside the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23, and further outside the addendum circle C2 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23.
That is, although the addendum circle C1 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b is located on the center side of the addendum circle C2 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23, it is separated from the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23, and the pitch circle It does not intersect with C4. The addendum circle C2 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23 is located on the center side of the addendum circle C1 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b, but is separated from the pitch circle C3 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b. It does not intersect with C3. The pitch circle C3 of the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b does not intersect the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor-side gear portion 23. As shown in FIG.
11, pinion portions 96a and 96b of the changing drive source 7 are meshed with the rack portions 71 and 81 so that the rotational force of the geared motor 95 can be transmitted to the rack portions 71 and 81. As shown in FIG.

When the article 200 is transported from the flat area 100 to the sub-transport conveyor line 202, the posture is changed from the sub-transport posture to the main transport posture.
That is, the geared motor 95 of the changing drive source 7 is reversely rotated, and the guide members 61a, 61b are moved in the direction opposite to the extending direction by the rack-and-pinion mechanism between the pinion portions 96a, 96b and the rack portions 71, 81. Let
Along with the movement of the guide members 61a and 61b, the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b run on the first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b, and from above the first low position portions 76a and 76b of the first horizontal moving member 65 It moves onto the first high position portions 75a and 75b.
Similarly, as the guiding members 61a and 61b move, the sub-conveyance cam follower portions 50a and 50b run on the second direct acting cam portions 80a and 80b, and the second high position portions 85a and 85b of the second horizontal moving member 66 move. It moves from above to the second low position portions 86a and 86b, and is changed from the sub-conveyance posture to the main conveyance posture.

At this time, as the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b run on the first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b, the main conveying conveyor portion 2 rises, and the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b move toward the second direct acting cam portions 80a and 70b. The sub-conveyor section 3 descends as it travels on 80b.
In the driving source 6 for transportation, the pitch circle C3 of the driving side gear portions 91a and 91b approaches the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor side gear portion 23 as the posture is changed from the sub-transporting posture to the main transporting posture.
In addition, the rotation shafts of the main transport cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the rotation shafts of the sub-transport cam follower portions 50a and 50b move up and down in the horizontal direction X while maintaining a constant position.

When the transfer device 1 assumes the main transport posture, the following article 200 from the upstream conveyor line 203 can be received on the main transport path 27 of the main transport conveyor section 2 .

When the main conveyer line 201 conveys the article 200 as it is, the article 200 is conveyed along the main conveying path 27 in the main conveying attitude without changing to the sub-conveying attitude.

According to the transfer device 1 of this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. When viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main conveyance cam follower sections 30a and 30b, the rotation axis of the main conveyance cam follower sections 30a and 30b and the rotation axis of the auxiliary conveyance cam follower sections 50a and 50b are arranged in the second horizontal movement member 66. Substantially vertically aligned in the change motion. Therefore, in the attitude change operation, the supporting position of the main conveyer portion 2 and the supporting position of the sub-conveyor portion 3 are always constant, the article 200 is less likely to tilt, and even if the article 200 is heavy, it is stably transferred. can.

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, the rotation shafts of the main transfer cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the rotation shafts of the auxiliary transfer cam follower portions 50a and 50b are the same when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main transfer cam follower portions 30a and 30b. They are aligned substantially vertically in the attitude change operation. Therefore, the traveling distance of the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b on the first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b and the traveling distance of the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b on the second direct acting cam portions 80a and 80b required for lifting and lowering are calculated. The distance can be shortened, and the main conveying cam follower portions 30a, 30b and the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a, 50b can be provided at both end portions of the guide members 61a, 61b.

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, the main transport cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the sub-transport cam follower portions 50a and 50b are arranged on separate first horizontal movement members 65 and second horizontal movement members 66, respectively. The interval between the main conveying cam followers 30a and 30b and the interval between the sub-conveying cam followers 50a and 50b can be widened. Therefore, even if the article 200 is heavy and is placed in a biased position in the longitudinal direction of the guide members 61a and 61b, it is possible to prevent the main conveyer portion 2 and the sub-conveyor portion 3 from tilting. The path 27 and sub-transport path 43 can be kept horizontal.

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, since the horizontal movement members 65 and 66 are integrally fixed, the horizontal movement members 65 and 66 can be moved simultaneously by one changing drive source 7 . Also, the positional relationship of the heights of the cam follower portions 30a, 30b, 50a, 50b can be fixed.

According to the transfer device 1 of this embodiment, the second high position portions 85a and 85b are positioned above the first low position portions 76a and 76b when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main transfer cam follower portions 30a and 30b. , the first high position portions 75a and 75b are positioned above the second low position portions 86a and 86b. Therefore, it is possible to shorten the traveling distance of the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b on the first direct acting cam portions 70a and 70b and the traveling distance of the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b on the second direct acting cam portions 80a and 80b. .

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, the pinion portions 96a and 96b and the rack portions 71 and 81 form a rack and pinion mechanism. can be converted into a movement force of

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e of the main conveying conveyor section 2 move up and down from the gaps between the adjacent sub conveying rollers 41a and 41b (41g and 41h) of the sub conveying conveyor section 3. Therefore, the size of the plane area 100 can be reduced, and the overall device can be made compact.

According to the transfer device 1 of this embodiment, when changing from the main transport posture to the sub-transport posture in the posture change operation, the rotation shafts of the main transport cam follower portions 30a and 30b are the rotation shafts of the sub-transport cam follower portions 50a and 50b. After passing through a position at the same height as the rotation axis of the sub-carrying cam follower portions 50a and 50b, it reaches a position lower than the rotation axis of the sub-carrying cam follower portions 50a and 50b. Therefore, the article 200 can be smoothly transferred from the main transport path 27 to the sub-transport path 43 .

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e and the motorized roller 90 are interlocked by the gear mechanism of the conveyor side gear portions 23, 23 and the drive side gear portions 91a, 91b. Therefore, the power of the motorized roller 90 can be transmitted to the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e more efficiently.
According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, the conveyor-side gear portions 23, 23 and the drive-side gear portions 91a, 91b are always meshed with the posture change from the sub-transport posture to the main transport posture. Therefore, the conveyor-side gear portions 23, 23 and the drive-side gear portions 91a, 91b do not come off, and the attitude can be changed more stably.

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, the addendum circles C1 of the drive side gear portions 91a and 91b enter the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor side gear portion 23 in the main transport posture. Therefore, in the main transport posture, the power of the motorized roller 90 can be more efficiently transmitted to the main transport rollers 21a to 21e.

According to the transfer device 1 of this embodiment, the addendum circles C1 of the drive side gear portions 91a and 91b are separated from the pitch circle C4 of the conveyor side gear portion 23 in the sub-conveyance attitude. Therefore, the distance between the drive-side gear portions 91a and 91b and the conveyor-side gear portion 23 can be increased in the sub-carrying posture.

According to the transfer device 1 of the present embodiment, power is transmitted from the driving side gear portions 91a and 91b to the roller side gear portions 26 of the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e via the inter-roller interlocking gear portions 22a to 22d. . Therefore, power can be transmitted more stably from the driving side gear portions 91a and 91b to the roller side gear portions 26 of the main conveying rollers 21a to 21e.

According to the transfer device 1 of this embodiment, the heights of the follower portions 30a, 30b, 50a, and 50b are changed by the uneven shapes of the linear cam portions 70a, 70b, 80a, and 80b, The heights of the cam follower portions 30a, 30b, 50a, 50b are kept the same. Therefore, the heights of the transport conveyors 2 and 3 do not fluctuate.

In the above-described embodiment, the main transport conveyor section 2 is provided with two roller units 10a and 10b, but the present invention is not limited to this. The main transport conveyor section 2 may be provided with three or more roller units.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the transport conveyor sections 2 and 3 are roller conveyors has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. The transport conveyor sections 2 and 3 may be other conveyors such as belt conveyors and roller conveyors.

In the above-described embodiment, the main transport rollers 21a to 21e of the main transport conveyor 2 are interlocked by the gears 22a to 22d, 26, but the present invention is not limited to this. In the main transport conveyor section 2, the main transport rollers 21a to 21e may be interlocked by a belt.

In the above-described embodiment, the sub-conveyor conveyor section 3 interlocks with the sub-conveyance rollers 41a to 41h with the belt 48 suspended thereon, but the present invention is not limited to this. In the sub-conveyance conveyor section 3, like the main conveyance conveyor section 2, the sub-conveyance rollers 41a to 41h may be interlocked by gear sections.

In the above embodiment, the main conveyor section 2 is provided on the main conveyor line 201 and the sub-conveyor section 3 is provided on the sub-conveyor line 202, but the present invention is not limited to this. The transfer conveyor section 2 may be provided on the sub-transfer conveyor line 202 and the sub-transfer conveyor section 3 may be provided on the main transfer conveyor line 201 . That is, the transfer device 1 may be rotated by 90 degrees in plan view.

Although the connecting member 67 is interposed between the horizontally moving members 65 and 66 in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this. The horizontal movement members 65, 66 may be directly connected.

In the above-described embodiment, the horizontally moving members 65 and 66 are connected by the connecting member 67 that does not have a rotating function, but the present invention is not limited to this. A guide roller 68 may be interposed between the horizontally moving members 65 and 66 as a connection member of the present invention, and the horizontally moving members 65 and 66 may be connected by the guide roller 68 . In this case, the guide rollers 68 outside the horizontally moving members 65 and 66 may be provided or omitted.

In the above-described embodiment, the pinion portion of the changing drive source 7 is composed of two pinion portions 96a and 96b, respectively, but the present invention is not limited to this. The pinion portion of the changing drive source 7 may be composed of one pinion portion.

In the above embodiment, the case where the diameters of the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the diameters of the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b are the same has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. The diameters of the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the diameters of the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b may be different.

In the above embodiment, the case where the height of the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the height of the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a and 50b are the same has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. The height of the main conveying cam follower portions 30a, 30b and the height of the sub conveying cam follower portions 50a, 50b may be different.

In the above-described embodiment, the rotation axes of the main transport cam follower portions 30a and 30b and the sub-transport cam follower portions 50a and 50b are arranged substantially vertically in the attitude changing operation, but the present invention is limited to this. not something. The main conveying cam follower portions 30a, 30b and the sub-conveying cam follower portions 50a, 50b may be displaced horizontally within the range of overlapping each other in the vertical direction when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main conveying cam follower portion 30a. That is, the sub-carrying cam follower portions 50a and 50b may be shifted horizontally within the range where the sub-carrying cam follower portions 50a and 50b are positioned on the vertical projected plane of the main conveying cam follower portions 30a and 30b.

As long as the above-described embodiments are within the technical scope of the present invention, each constituent member can be freely replaced or added between the embodiments.

1 Transfer Device 2 Main Conveyor Section 3 Sub Conveyor Section 7 Drive Source for Change (Drive Source)
21a to 21e Main transport rollers 22a to 22d Interlocking gear part between rollers 23 Conveyor side gear part 26 Roller side gear part 27 Main transport path 30a, 30b Main transport cam follower part 41a to 41h Sub transport roller 43 Sub transport path 50a, 50b Sub transport Cam follower portion 65 First horizontal movement member 66 Second horizontal movement member 67 Connection member 70a, 70b First direct acting cam portion 71 First rack portion 75a, 75b First high position portion 76a, 76b First low position portion 80a, 80b Second direct acting cam portion 81 Second rack portion 85a, 85b Second high position portion 86a, 86b Second low position portion 90 Motor built-in roller (main conveying drive motor)
91a, 91b drive side gear portion 95 geared motor (motor)
96a, 96b pinion portion 100 flat area 200 article (conveyed article)

Claims (13)

It has a main conveyor section, a sub-conveyor section, and an elevating mechanism,
The main conveyer section has a main conveying path for conveying the article to be conveyed in a predetermined direction and a main conveying cam follower section,
The sub-conveyor section has a sub-conveyance path for conveying the article in a direction crossing the conveying direction of the main conveyance path and a sub-conveyance cam follower section,
the main transport path and the sub-transport path partially or entirely overlap with each other when viewed from above;
The elevating mechanism has a first horizontal movement member, a second horizontal movement member, and a drive source for horizontally moving the first horizontal movement member and the second horizontal movement member,
The first horizontal movement member has a first direct acting cam portion,
The second horizontal movement member has a second direct acting cam portion,
By driving the drive source, the main conveying cam follower portion travels on the first direct acting cam portion, the sub conveying cam follower portion travels on the second direct acting cam portion, and the main conveying path and an attitude change operation in which one of the sub-conveyance paths rises and the other sub-conveyance path descends,
The transfer device, wherein the main carrier cam follower section overlaps with the sub carrier cam follower section on a projection surface in a vertical direction when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main carrier cam follower section in the attitude changing operation. 4. The rotating shaft of said main carrying cam follower portion and the rotating shaft of said sub-carrying cam follower portion are substantially aligned in the vertical direction when viewed from the direction of the rotating shaft of said main carrying cam follower portion during said posture changing operation. 1. The transfer device according to 1. The first horizontally moving member is fixed to the second horizontally moving member directly or via a connecting member,
3. The transfer device according to claim 1, wherein said first horizontal movement member and said second horizontal movement member move together in the horizontal direction in said posture changing operation. The first direct acting cam portion has a first high position portion and a first low position portion,
The second direct acting cam portion has a second high position portion and a second low position portion,
The second high position portion is positioned above the first low position portion and the first high position portion is positioned above the second low position portion when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the main cam follower portion. 4. The transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The transfer device according to claim 4, wherein the second high position portion is provided at an end portion of the second horizontally moving member in the moving direction of the second horizontally moving member. The first horizontally moving member has a first rack portion,
The second horizontally moving member has a second rack portion,
6. The drive source according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the drive source includes a pinion portion that forms a rack-and-pinion mechanism together with each of the first rack portion and the second rack portion, and a motor that rotates the pinion portion. The transfer device described in . The sub-conveyance conveyor section is a roller conveyor in which a plurality of sub-conveyance rollers are arranged in the conveyance direction of the sub-conveyance path,
7. The main conveying conveyor part has a plurality of main conveying rollers, and the main conveying rollers rise from between adjacent sub-conveying rollers in the conveying direction of the sub-conveying path. Transfer device as described. The posture changing operation includes a main transport posture in which the main transport path is positioned higher than the sub-transport path and the article can be transported on the main transport path, changing between a sub-conveyance posture at a high position and capable of conveying the goods on the sub-conveyance path;
When changing from the main conveying posture to the sub-conveying posture, the rotating shaft of the main conveying cam follower portion is lowered from a position higher than the rotating shaft of the sub-conveying cam follower portion so as to be aligned with the rotating shaft of the sub-conveying cam follower portion. The transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, which passes through a position of the same height and reaches a position lower than the rotation axis of the sub-carrying cam follower section. The posture changing operation includes a main transport posture in which the main transport path is positioned higher than the sub-transport path and the article can be transported on the main transport path, changing between a sub-conveyance posture at a high position and capable of conveying the goods on the sub-conveyance path;
a main transport drive motor having a drive side gear portion;
The main conveying conveyor section has a plurality of main conveying rollers and a conveyor-side gear section that interlocks with the main conveying rollers,
In the sub-conveying posture, the addendum circle of the conveyor-side gear portion is inside the addendum circle of the drive-side gear portion. are separated from each other, and the pitch circle of the drive-side gear portion and the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion approach each other as the posture is changed from the sub-conveyance posture to the main conveyance posture. 1. The transfer device according to claim 1. The transfer device according to claim 9, wherein the addendum circle of the drive-side gear portion enters the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion in the main conveying posture. 11. The transfer device according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the addendum circle of the drive-side gear portion is separated from the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion in the sub-conveyance posture. The main conveying roller has a roller-side gear portion,
The main conveyer portion has a roller interlocking gear portion that meshes with the roller side gear portion and interlocks between the main conveying rollers adjacent in the conveying direction of the main conveying path,
The transfer device according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the inter-roller interlocking gear portion meshes with the conveyor-side gear portion. It has a main conveyor section, a sub-conveyor section, and an elevating mechanism,
The main conveyer section has a main conveying path for conveying an article to be conveyed in a predetermined direction,
The sub-conveyor section has a sub-conveyance path for conveying the article in a direction crossing the conveying direction of the main conveyance path,
the main transport path and the sub-transport path partially or entirely overlap with each other when viewed from above;
a main transport posture in which the main transport path is positioned higher than the sub-transport path and the article can be transported on the main transport path; capable of executing an attitude change operation of changing between a sub-conveyance attitude in which the conveyed article can be conveyed on the sub-conveyance path,
a main transport drive motor having a drive side gear portion;
The main conveying conveyor section has a plurality of main conveying rollers and a conveyor-side gear section that interlocks with the main conveying rollers,
In the sub-conveying posture, the addendum circle of the conveyor-side gear portion is inside the addendum circle of the drive-side gear portion. are separated from each other, and the pitch circle of the drive-side gear portion and the pitch circle of the conveyor-side gear portion approach each other as the posture is changed from the sub-conveyance posture to the main conveyance posture.

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