Transfer system of food products by means of pickers

• US 7,240,465 B2
• Filed: 04/20/2005
• Issued: 07/10/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: CT Pack S.R.L.
• Original Assignee: CT Pack S.R.L.
• Inventors: Rosignoli, David, Davi', Daniele, Mezzaro, Daniele
• Primary Examiner(s): GERRITY, STEPHEN FRANCIS
• Application Number:
  US11/111,561
• Publication Number:
  US 20050241494A1
• Time in Patent Office: 811 Days
• Field of Search: 53/55, 53/58, 534/98, 535/00, 535/02, 532/845, 531/361, 53/53, 532/40, 532/44, 532/46, 198/437, 700/213, 700/259
• US Class Current: 53/58
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1697 Vision controlled systems
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/105 by grippers B65B5/12 and B65B5/108 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 57/12 and operating to control, or stop, the feed of wrapping materials, containers, or packages
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 57/16 and operating to stop, or to control the speed of, the machine as a whole
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4182 manipulators and conveyor only
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31445 Detect changed working conditions, to correct machine load, balance
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/40554 Object recognition to track object on conveyor
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

A transfer system for food products (P) having a product conveyor (11); a first support conveyor (13) suitable for moving supports (12) in equicurrent with the food products (P); a plurality of pickers (R1, R2, R3) situated in series along the run of the products (P) and supports (12) for individually collecting the products (P) from the product conveyor (11) to arrange them on the supports (12) translated from the first support conveyor (13); presence and position surveying devices (C1, C2) of which at least one is situated upstream with respect to the food products (P), of a first picker (R1) of the plurality of pickers (R1, R2, R3) suitable for detecting the presence, number, position and orientation of each product (P); an electronic image with a presence and position surveying device (C3), also connected to an electronic image identification and data processing system (34), wherein the pickers (R1–R4) are equipped with handlers (22) with an individual grip of the sucker type, with an anti-crash system and a suction circuit.

Claims

1. A transfer system for food products (P) comprising:

a product conveyor (11);

a first support conveyor (13) suitable for moving supports (12) in equicurrent with the food products (P);

a plurality of pickers (R1, R2, R3) situated in series along the run of said products (P) and supports (12) and suitable for individually collecting said products (P) from the product conveyor (11) to arrange them on the supports (12) translated from the first support conveyor (13);

presence and position surveying means (C1, C2) of which at least one is situated upstream with respect to the food products (P), of a first picker (R1) of said plurality of pickers (R1, R2, R3) suitable for detecting the presence, number, position and orientation of each product (P);

an electronic image identification and data processing system (34), in addition to calculation of potentiality, flow rate and distribution of the charge between the pickers (R1, R2, R3), as well as the control of the speed of the conveyors, to transfer data and instructions to the pickers, characterized in that said transfer system also comprises a second parallel support conveyor (14), transferring the supports (12) in equicurrent with respect to the food products (P), assisted by a specific finishing picker (R4), situated downstream of said plurality of pickers (R1, R2, R3), in turn equipped with presence and position surveying means (C3), also connected to said electronic image identification and data processing system (34), wherein said pickers (R1–

R4) are of the 4-axis type, and are equipped with rotatable handlers (22), with an individual grip of the sucker type, with an anti-crash system and with a suction circuit supported by a supplementary sleeve filter for air purification, comprising a suction group for each handler (22), equipped with a pump, special Vortex type inversion valves, and sucker type water washing tubes having water flowing counter-currently with respect to the suction direction.

2. The transfer system according to claim 1, wherein said product conveyor (11) is situated between the two support conveyors (13, 14).

3. The transfer system according to claim 2, wherein said supports (12) can be trays or cases completely closable, or a combination of trays or cases completely closable.

4. The transfer system according to claim 3, wherein said support conveyors (13, 14) are belt type conveyors.

5. The transfer system according to claim 3, wherein said support conveyors (13, 14) are belt conveyors with a hop-chain (17).

6. The transfer system according to claim 5, wherein the relative speed of the two support conveyors (13, 14) is fixed in relation to the ratio between a picker dedicated to the first (13) and the second support conveyor (14), within a certain regulation margin.

7. The transfer system according to claim 6, wherein said support conveyors (13, 14) have a relative speed fixed in a ratio that is variable from 1:

2 to 1;

5 with the first conveyor (13) translating at a higher speed.

8. The transfer system according to claim 7, wherein said support conveyors (13, 14) have a relative speed fixed in a ratio of 1:

3.

9. The transfer system according to claim 1, wherein said presence and position surveying means (C1, C2, C3), each include a monochromatic television camera (20′

, 20″

, 20′

″

) for acquiring the image of products P and one or more high frequency light sources (21).

10. The transfer system according to claim 1, wherein upstream of said product conveyor (11), a feeding belt (15) is positioned on which the products are placed at random, together with a vibrating belt (16) onto which the products are discharged to be separated if joined together.

11. The transfer system according to claim 1, wherein said presence and position surveying means (C1, C2, C3) are situated before the first picker (R1), before the second picker (R2) and before the finishing picker (R4).

12. A canning and packaging plant (30) of products (P), characterized in that said plant comprises a transfer system (10) according to claim 1.

13. The plant (30) according to claim 12, wherein, downstream of the transfer system (10), there is a line (42) as a continuation of the first support conveyor (13) together with a line (43) which continues the second support conveyor (14), wherein a packaging machine (47) of the flow-pack type, with thermo-welded film packaging, is provided for each line of filled supports (42, 43), when supports of the tray type are used, or a closing machine (54) when supports of the case/box type are adopted.

14. The plant (30) according to claim 13, wherein each of the two lines (42, 43), following the packaging unit (47), has a labelling machine (51), a metal detector (52), a weigh-price-marker (53) and a stacking or storage station (56).

15. The plant (30) according to claim 12, wherein upstream of said transfer system (10), a case producer (31) is present, from which a first case conveyor line (32) starts, alongside a second case conveyor line (33).

16. The plant (30) according to claim 15, wherein along the run of the two lines (32, 33), strippers (35, 36) are present for separating stacked trays.

17. The plant (30) according to claim 12, wherein said plant comprises a closing unit (54) and a control scale (55), when cases/boxes are used.

18. A transfer system for food products (P) comprising:

a product conveyor (11);

a first support conveyor (13) suitable for moving supports (12) in equicurrent with the food products (P);

a plurality of pickers (Rl, R2, R3) situated in series along the run of said products (P) and supports (12) and suitable for individually collecting said products (P) from the product conveyor (11) to arrange them on the supports (12) translated from the first support conveyor (13);

presence and position surveying means (C1, C2) of which at least one is situated upstream with respect to the food products (P), of a first picker (R1) of said plurality of pickers (R1, R2, R3) suitable for detecting the presence, number, position and orientation of each product (P);

an electronic image identification and data processing system (34), in addition to calculation of potentiality, flow rate and distribution of the charge between the pickers (R1, R2, R3), as well as the control of the speed of the conveyors, to transfer data and instructions to the pickers, characterized in that said transfer system also comprises a second parallel support conveyor (14), transferring the supports (12) in equicurrent with respect to the food products (P), assisted by a specific finishing picker (R4), situated downstream of said plurality of pickers (R1, R2, R3), in turn equipped with presence and position surveying means (C3), also connected to said electronic image identification and data processing system (34), wherein said pickers (R1–

R4) are equipped with rotatable handlers (22), with an individual grip of the sucker type, with an anti-crash system and with a suction circuit comprising a suction group for each handler (22), equipped with a pump, inversion valves, and sucker type washing tubes having water in counter-current flow with respect to the suction direction.