Abstract:
An article discharging apparatus of the present invention includes: a first tilting member for tilting the container; a second tilting member for further tilting the container that has been tilted by the first tilting member; and an article moving member arranged close to the second tilting member-and adapted to move the article. An article discharging apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention includes: a tilting member for tilting the container; and an article moving member arranged close to the tilting member and adapted to move the article. The tilting member includes a container moving member, a container fixing member, and a shutter portion for opening and closing at least a part of an opening of the container. The article discharging apparatus of the present invention can include a member for pushing out the article through a through-hole in a bottom portion of the container.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention relates to an apparatus used to extract articles in a container and, in particular, to an article discharging apparatus making it possible to extract, for example, articles stacked together in a container, such as large envelopes, efficiently in a stacked state.  
         [0003]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0004]     Recently, it has become a widely exercised practice to obtain books, magazines, etc. through online marketing. Such books or magazines are delivered to the purchaser by mail or by a delivery service. Documents and magazines are accommodated in dedicated large envelopes. The post office or the home delivery company stacks these large envelopes in a container, and conveys the large envelopes by a conveying apparatus as disclosed, for example, in JP 2003-237926 A, sorting them out according to the delivery area by using a sorter. Usually, in performing the above operation, the operator manually extracts a plurality of large envelopes stacked together from a container, and supplies them to the sorter.  
         [0005]      FIG. 1A  and  FIG. 1B  are a front view and a side view of a conventional example of an envelope discharging apparatus used to extract large envelopes from a container. An envelope discharging apparatus  100  has a movable plate  110 , an air cylinder  120  for rotating the movable plate  110 , and a working table  130 . Large envelopes  9  are stacked together in a container  90 . The container  90  moves on a roller conveyor  170 . The roller conveyor  170  has a plurality of rollers  171 , a pair of frames  172  where the rollers  171  are arranged, a driving means (not shown) for rotating the rollers  171 , and a guide rail  173  for guiding the container  90 . The roller conveyor  170  is provided on top of a base  174 . The roller conveyor  170  conveys the container  90  automatically to the envelope discharging apparatus  100 .  
         [0006]     The movable plate  110  has a bottom plate  111 , a side plate  112 , and a lock plate  113 , which are formed of metal or resin. An end portion of the bottom plate  111  is rotatably connected to the frames  172  on the working table  130  side. The lock plate  113  is formed at the upper end of the side plate  112 . The lock plate  113  prevents the container  90  from moving toward the working table  130  side when the movable plate  110  is tilted.  
         [0007]     A distal end portion  121  of the air cylinder  120  is rotatably mounted to the central portion of the bottom plate  111 . An air cylinder main body portion  122  is movably mounted to the base  174  of the roller conveyor  170 . The air cylinder  120  moves the distal end portion  121  to tilt the movable plate  110  by approximately 85 degrees toward the working table  130 . The air cylinder  120  is controlled by the operator. The working table  130  is arranged adjacent to the roller conveyor  170  and connected to the base  174 . Further, the working table  130  is connected to a supply portion (not shown) of a sorter.  
         [0008]      FIGS. 2A through 2D  show an example of how the envelope discharging apparatus  100  described above and the operator operate. In  FIG. 2A , the roller conveyor  170  conveys the container  90  accommodating the large envelopes  9  stacked together to a position corresponding to the movable plate  110 . The subsequent container  90  is on standby in front of the movable plate  110 . An operator  200  makes himself ready to support the large envelopes  90  discharged from the container  90 .  
         [0009]     In  FIG. 2B , the operator  200  manipulates a button switch  123  to operate the air cylinder  120 . The air cylinder  120  tilts the movable plate  110  by approximately 85 degrees. The operator  200  supports the large envelopes in the container  90 .  
         [0010]     In  FIG. 2C , the operator  200  tilts the large envelopes  9  to the right. Then, while supporting the large envelopes  9 , the operator  200  puts the left hand into the container  90  and holds the large envelopes  9  between both hands.  
         [0011]     In  FIG. 2D , the operator  200  extracts the large envelopes  9  held between both hands from the container  90 , and then places them at the supply portion of the sorter. When, thereafter, the button switch  123  is manipulated, the movable plate  110  and the container  90  are restored to the former positions. The roller conveyor  170  conveys the empty container  90 . With this, one cycle of the operation of extracting large envelopes from the envelope discharging apparatus  100  is completed.  
         [0012]     As described above, the operator puts his hand into the container  90 , extracts the large envelopes  9  from the container  90 , and places them at the supply portion of the sorter. It should be noted, however, that the movement of a large number of large envelopes  9  gives the operator a heavy physical burden.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0013]     It is an object of the present invention to provide an article discharging apparatus that relieves the burden on the operator as mentioned above. To achieve the above object, there is provided, in accordance with the present invention, an article discharging apparatus including a first tilting means for tilting a container, a second tilting means for further tilting the container that has been tilted by the first tilting means, and an article moving means for moving an article, the article moving means being arranged close to the second tilting means. In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an article discharging apparatus including a tilting means for tilting a container, and an article moving means for moving an article, the article moving means being arranged close to the tilting means. Further, the tilting means includes a container moving means, a container fixing means, and a shutter portion for opening/closing at least a part of a container opening. In still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an article discharging apparatus including a tilting means for tilting a container, and a mechanism for pushing out articles through a through-hole at the bottom of the container. Further, the tilting means includes a member accommodating the container, and a means for pushing a bottom portion of the member to tilt the member. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]     The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent form the following detailed description when taken with the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0015]      FIG. 1A  and  FIG. 1B  are a front view and a side view, respectively, of an example of a conventional large envelope extracting apparatus;  
         [0016]      FIGS. 2A through 2D  illustrate an example of how the apparatus shown in  FIGS. 1A and 1B  is operated;  
         [0017]      FIG. 3  is a side view of an article discharging apparatus according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0018]      FIG. 4  is a plan view of the article discharging apparatus of the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0019]      FIGS. 5A through 5G  illustrate an example of how the article discharging apparatus and an operator work;  
         [0020]      FIG. 6  is a side view of an article discharging apparatus according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0021]      FIG. 7  is a plan view of the article discharging apparatus of the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0022]      FIGS. 8A through 8G  illustrate an example of how the article discharging apparatus of the second exemplary embodiment works;  
         [0023]      FIG. 9  is a side view of an article discharging apparatus according to a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0024]      FIG. 10A  and  FIG. 10B  are a front view and a side view, respectively, of an article discharging apparatus according to a fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0025]     Preferred exemplary embodiments of an article discharging apparatus of the present invention will be described below.  FIG. 3  is a side view of an article discharging apparatus  1  according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 4  is a plan view of the article discharging apparatus  1  of this embodiment. In this embodiment, the articles to be discharged are large envelopes  9 . The article discharging apparatus  1  is equipped with a rotary member  21  for tilting a container  90  capable of accommodating the large envelopes  9 , and a rotary member  22  for further tilting the container  90  tilted by the rotary member  21 . Further, the article discharging apparatus  1  is equipped with a belt conveyor  4  on which the large envelopes  9  discharged from the container  90  move.  
         [0026]     The rotary member  21  has a bottom plate  211  and a side plate  212 . The side plate  212  is connected to the bottom plate  211  at an angle of approximately 90 degrees. The bottom plate  211  and the side plate  212  rotate in conjunction with each other around a rotation shaft  214 . In this embodiment, the bottom plate  211  and the side plate  212  rotate clockwise by approximately 85 degrees. The bottom plate  211  has at its distal end a lock plate  213 . To enable the bottom plate  221  of the rotary member  22  to rotate, the side plate  212  is divided into two portions. Alternatively, the side plate  212  is formed in a U-shaped configuration. The side plate  212  has at its distal end a lock portion  217 . In this embodiment, the lock portion  217  has a substantially triangular sectional configuration. In the lock portion  217 , a slope  216  on the distal end portion side of the side plate  212  facilitates the movement of the large envelopes from the tilted container  90  onto the belt conveyor  4 .  
         [0027]     The rotary member  22  has a bottom plate  221 . The bottom plate  221  has at its distal end a lock plate  222 . The bottom plate  221  rotates around a rotation shaft  223 . At this time, the bottom plate  221  passes the middle portions of the two portions of the side plate.  212 . The bottom plate  221  rotates by a predetermined angle, and further tilts the tilted container  90  situated on the side plate  212  by a predetermined angle.  
         [0028]     A casing  5  is arranged around the rotary members  21  and  22 . At the forward end of the casing  5 , there is formed a plate-like lock portion  51 . The plate-like lock portion  51  prevents the container  90  tilted by the rotary member  22  from further rotating or moving.  
         [0029]     When the container  90  is locked by the plate-like lock portion  51 , the belt conveyor  4  is arranged close to the container  90 . The upper surface of the belt conveyor  4  is inclined. Thus, the large envelopes  9  discharged from the container  90  can move easily. The operator supports the large envelopes by hand, and causes them to move on the belt conveyor  4 . Further arranged adjacent to the belt conveyor  4  are a belt conveyor  310  and a support portion  320 . The support portion  320  can move over the belt conveyor  310  along a guide. The operator supports the large envelopes  9  by the support portion  320 , and causes them to move on the belt conveyor  310 , guiding them to a sorter (not shown) by way of a support portion  300 . The belt conveyor  4  may or may not have a driving means. Instead of the belt conveyor  4 , it is also possible to use a plate member with a smooth surface.  
         [0030]      FIGS. 5A through 5G  illustrate an example of the way the article discharging apparatus  1  and the operator work. In FIG.  5 A, a roller conveyor  170  conveys the container  90  accommodating the large envelopes  9  stacked together to the position of the bottom plate  211 . When, in  FIG. 5B , the operator  200  depresses a button switch (not shown) an air cylinder (not shown) operates to rotate the bottom plate  211  by approximately 85 degrees. The container  90  is situated substantially sidewise on the side plate  212 . At this time, the large envelopes  9  in the container  90  are standing substantially upright. In  FIG. 5C , the rotary member  22  further rotates the container  22  by approximately 35 degrees. Here, the operator supports the large envelopes  9  being discharged with his right hand  201 . In  FIG. 5D , while supporting the large envelopes  9  with the right hand  201 , the operator transfers all the large envelopes  9  onto the belt conveyor  4 . In  FIG. 5E , the operator manipulates the button switch to restore the rotary member  22  to its former position. The operator supports the large envelopes  9  with the right hand  201  and the left hand  202 . Since the large envelopes  9  move downwardly on the slope of the belt conveyor  4 , the burden on the operator is relieved. In  FIG. 5F , the rotary member  21  restores the empty conveyor  90  to its former position on the roller conveyor  170 . The operator transfers the discharged large envelopes  9  onto the belt conveyor  310 , and moves them to a support portion  320 . In  FIG. 5G , the operator moves the support portion  320  to the left-hand side of the large envelopes  9 . With this, the setting of the large envelopes  9  at the supply portion  300  of the sorter is completed. At this point in time, one cycle of the operation of discharging the large envelopes  9  from the article discharging apparatus  1  is completed. In the above operation, the large envelopes  90  are discharged smoothly from the container  90 , so that the burden on the operator is substantially relieved.  
         [0031]      FIG. 6  is a side view of the article discharging apparatus  1  according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 7  is a plan view of the article discharging apparatus  1 . The basic construction of the article discharging apparatus  1  is the same as that of the article discharging apparatus  1  as shown in  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4 . In the article discharging apparatus  1  of this embodiment, a support means  6  is arranged above the belt conveyor  4 . The support means  6  has a movable portion  62 , a guide portion  63 , and a support bar  61 . The movable portion  62  and the guide portion  63  constitute a linear motor. The support bar  61  is rotatably mounted to the movable portion  62 . The guide portion  63  is arranged substantially parallel to the upper surface (inclined surface) of the belt conveyor  4 . The support bar  61  supports the large envelopes  9  discharged, and moves them on the belt conveyor  4 . There is no need for the operator to support the large envelopes  9 . The support means  6  can be formed by utilizing a ball screw, and an elastic member such as a spring or rubber.  
         [0032]     As shown in the enlarged portion of  FIG. 6 , in the second exemplary embodiment, there are formed a plurality of linear protrusions  42  on the surface of the belt of the belt conveyor  4 . The linear protrusions  42  can lock the large envelopes  9  discharged from the container  90 . Thus, the large envelopes  9  stacked together are reliably moved. The belt conveyor  4  having linear protrusions is equivalent to a belt conveyor having linear grooves in terms of function and appearance. When the belt conveyor  4  has a power portion, it is possible to synchronize the operations of the linear motor and the belt conveyor  4 .  
         [0033]      FIGS. 8A through 8G  show an example of how the article discharging apparatus  1  shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7  operates. In  FIG. 8A , the roller conveyor  170  conveys the container  90  accommodating the large envelopes  9  stacked together to the position of the bottom plate  211 . At this time, the support bar  61  is situated on the roller conveyor  170  side. In  FIG. 8B , the operator  200  depresses the button switch (not shown) to rotate the bottom plate  211  by approximately 85 degrees. The tray  90  is situated on the side plate  212  substantially sidewise. At this time, the large envelopes  9  in the container  90  are standing substantially upright. In  FIG. 8C , the rotary member  22  further rotates the container  90  by approximately 35 degrees. At this time, the support bar  61  supports the large envelopes  9  discharged from the container  90 . In  FIG. 8D , the support means  6  moves the support bar  61  downwards along the belt conveyor  4 . The large envelopes  9  move sequentially on the belt conveyor  4  while supported by the support bar  61 . In  FIG. 8E , the operator supports the large envelopes  9  with the right hand  201 , and rotates the support bar  61  with the left hand  202 . Subsequently, the operator moves the movable portion  62  to the roller conveyor  170  side, and restores the support bar  61  to its former position. Further, the operator supports a plurality of large envelopes  9  stacked together with both hands. In  FIG. 8F , the rotary member  21  restores the empty container  9  to its former position on the roller conveyor  170 . The operator transfers the discharged large envelopes  9  onto the belt conveyor  310 , and moves them to the support portion  320 . In  FIG. 8G , the operator moves the support portion  320  to the left-hand side of the large envelopes  9 . At this time, the setting of the large envelopes  9  at the supply portion  300  of the sorter is completed. In the above operation, the burden on the operator is further relieved.  
         [0034]      FIG. 9  is a side view of an article discharging apparatus  1  according to still another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The article discharging apparatus  1  of this embodiment has a rotating means  7  for rotating the container  90  together with a roller conveyor  180 . The rotating means  7  has a pair of rotation rings  71 , which are supported by roller bearings  70 . To rotate the rotation rings  71 , it is possible to use a well-known means (such as a motor, a transmission belt, or a gear). On either side of the rotation rings  71  there is arranged a predetermined support means (not shown) in order that the rotation rings  71  may not move in the direction of the central axis. The roller conveyor  180  is arranged independently of the conveyor for conveying the container  90 . A frame  182  of the roller conveyor  180  is connected to the inner side portions of the rotation rings  71 . Connected to the frame  182  of the roller conveyor  180  are a slide plate  72 , an electromagnetic solenoid  73  for retaining the container, and a shutter  74 . These components also rotate with the rotation rings  71 . When the rotating means  7  tilts the container  90  by, for example, approximately 125 degrees, the forward end portion of the slide plate  72  reaches an end portion of the belt conveyor  4 , and partially overlaps the same. The electromagnetic solenoid  73  presses the container  90  situated on the roller conveyor  180  against the slide plate  72  to secure the container  90 . The shutter  74  is opened and closed by a linear motor or the like (not shown). The shutter  74  covers the opening of the container  90 , making it possible to temporarily stop the discharge of the large envelopes. The roller conveyor  180  has a motor (not shown) The length of the roller conveyor  180  is larger than the width of the belt conveyor  4 .  
         [0035]     A casing  5  is arranged in the periphery of the rotating means  7 . The casing  5  covers the entire rotating means  7  except for those portions which are necessary for the conveyance of the container  90 , the discharge of the large envelopes  9 , etc. The casing  5  has a discharge outlet  52  for the large envelopes  9 , and a shutter  51  for opening and closing the discharge outlet  52 .  
         [0036]     An example of the operation of the article discharging apparatus  1  of  FIG. 9  will be described below. When the container  90  accommodating the large envelopes  9  comes to the roller conveyor  180 , the roller conveyor  180  moves the container  90  to a position substantially at the center of the roller conveyor  180 , and stops it there. Subsequently, the electromagnetic solenoid  73  for retaining the container presses the container  90  against the slide plate  72  to secure the container in position. At this time, the shutters  51  and  74  are closed. The rotation rings  71  rotate clockwise by approximately 125 degrees, and the upper end portion of the slide plate  72  comes into contact with the upper end portion of the belt conveyor  4 . The large envelopes  9  in the container  90  move toward the shutter  74  while in the stacked state. When the center of gravity of the container  90  accommodating the large envelopes  9 is brought close to the center of the rotation rings  71 , the impact when the large envelopes  9  collide with the shutter  74  is mitigated.  
         [0037]     Next, the shutter  51  is opened. When the operator brings the right hand close to the shutter  74 , a sensor operates, and the shutter  74  is opened automatically. The operator supports the large envelopes  9  discharged from the container  90  by hand, and transfers them onto the belt conveyor  4 . Thereafter, as in the operation of the above-described other embodiment, the operator sets the large envelopes  9  at the supply portion  300 . When the operator manipulates the button switch, the shutter  74  is closed, and then the shutter  51  is closed. Subsequently, the rotation rings  71  rotate counterclockwise by approximately 125 degrees to return to the former position. The electromagnetic solenoid  73  for retaining the container is restored to the initial position, and the roller conveyor  180  carries the empty container  90  out of the casing  5 . In this embodiment also, the burden on the operator is relieved.  
         [0038]      FIGS. 10A and 10B  are a front view and a side view, respectively, of an article discharging apparatus according to still another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The basic construction of the article discharging apparatus  1  of this embodiment is the same as that of the conventional apparatus as shown in  FIGS. 1A and 1B . In this embodiment, however, a through-hole is formed in the bottom surface of the container  90 . Further, the base  174  has an air cylinder  83 , and another air cylinder  84  for vertically moving the air cylinder  83 . A rod  82  of the air cylinder  83  passes through the through-hole of the bottom surface of the tilted container  90  to push out the large envelopes  9 . In this embodiment, the container  90  has two through-holes, and two rods  82  operate simultaneously to push out the large envelopes  9 . The operation of the air cylinder  122  tilting the container  90  can be synchronized with the operation of the air cylinders  83  and  84 . There is no need for the operator to put his hand in the container  90  and extract the large envelopes  9 . As a result, a reduction in burden is achieved.  
         [0039]     In the present invention, apart from large envelopes, the articles to be accommodated in the container  90  include small envelopes, postcards, etc.  
         [0040]     While the present invention has been described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the subject matter encompassed by the present invention is not limited to those specific embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to include all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as can be included within the spirit and scope of the following claims.  
         [0041]     Further, it is the inventor&#39;s intent to refrain all equivalents of the claimed invention even if the claims are amended during prosecution.