Patent Publication Number: US-2021163234-A1

Title: Transport device and furnace system

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a transport device and a furnace system. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     For example, when manufacturing products such as pharmaceutical products and food products, containers may be stored in a furnace to apply temperature treatment or pressure treatment such as freeze-drying treatment to contents in the containers. A conveyor is disposed in front of the furnace. The conveyor transports containers to be carried into the furnace and containers discharged from the furnace (for example, see Patent Literatures 1 to 3). 
     Patent Literature 1 proposes a method of transferring a row of containers onto a conveyor by inserting a thin sheet from a conveyor side under a row of containers closest to the conveyor among a plurality of containers arranged on a plate and pulling the sheet. 
     Patent Literature 2 proposes a method to be performed when pushing out and discharging containers from a furnace via a plate onto a conveyor by fixing a row of the containers adjacent to a row of containers pushed out onto the conveyor on the plate by a suction device to prevent the containers in the adjacent row of the containers from being pulled out and mixed into the row of the containers pushed out onto the conveyor. 
     Patent Literature 3 proposes a method of pushing a row of containers from a plurality of the containers arranged on a plate onto a conveyor, and then preventing the containers on the plate from coming into contact with the conveyor by moving the plate with the containers arranged thereon upward or moving the conveyor downward. 
     CITATION LIST 
     Patent Literature 
     PTL 1: EP1717533B 
     PTL 2: WO2015/082563A 
     PTL 3: US2009/208320A 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     Technical Problem 
     If one or more of containers pushed out of a furnace onto a conveyor fall over, the container(s) which has (have) fallen over may come into contact with containers that have not fallen over and may cause other containers to fall over when the conveyor is activated. In addition, not only for a step of manufacturing pharmaceutical products or food products, a technology which enables transport of a plurality of articles to a conveyor while avoiding an influence of the fallen articles is required. Accordingly, it is one of objects of the present invention to provide a transport device and a furnace system capable of transporting the plurality of articles onto the conveyor while avoiding an influence of the fallen articles. 
     Solution to Problem 
     According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transport device including: a support configured to allow a plurality of articles to be arranged on top; a discharging device configured to push the plurality of articles arranged on the support; a conveyor configured to transport the articles pushed out from the support; and a pusher configured to push back the unfallen articles among the articles pushed onto the conveyor toward the support and separate fallen articles from unfallen articles on the conveyor. 
     In the transport device described above, the discharging device may push out a greater number of rows of the articles than the number of rows of the articles transported each time by the conveyor onto the conveyor, and the pusher may push back the unfallen articles toward the support so that the articles remain on the conveyor by the number of rows to be transported each time by the conveyor. 
     In the transport device described above, the height at which the pusher comes into contact with the unfallen articles may be variable. 
     The transport device described above may further include an inserting member configured to be inserted between a surface of the conveyor and the fallen articles to place the fallen articles thereon, the inserting member moving in a direction opposite from the direction toward the support to move the fallen articles on the inserting member in the direction opposite from the direction toward the support. 
     The transport device described above may further include a push-out member configured to push out the fallen articles on the inserting member moving in the direction opposite from the direction toward the support onto the conveyor. 
     The transport device described above may further include a separation guide configured to guide a direction of travel of the fallen articles transported by the conveyor to a direction different from a direction of travel of the unfallen articles. 
     In the transport device described above, the discharging device may retract while supporting the articles while the pusher is pushing back the articles. 
     The transport device described above may further be provided a discharge guide configured to impede the movement of the articles in the direction of travel of the conveyor while the discharging device or the pusher is pushing the articles. 
     According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a furnace system including: a furnace; a plate disposed in the furnace; a discharging device configured to push a plurality of articles arranged on the plate; a bridge disposed adjacent to the plate; a conveyor disposed adjacent to the bridge and disposed outside of the furnace for transporting the articles pushed out from the plate; and a pusher configured to push back unfallen articles among the articles pushed onto the conveyor in a direction toward the bridge to separate the unfallen articles from the fallen articles on the conveyor. 
     In the furnace system described above, the discharging device may push out a greater number of rows of the articles than the number of rows of the articles transported each time by the conveyor, and the pusher may push back the unfallen articles toward the bridge so that the articles remain on the conveyor by the number of rows to be transported each time by the conveyor. 
     In the furnace system described above, the articles are vials, and the furnace system described above may further include an upper plate disposed above the plate in the furnace and configured to come into contact with upper parts of caps of the vials which are half-capped and cap the vials. 
     In the furnace system described above, the furnace may be a freeze dry furnace. 
     In the furnace system described above, the height at which the pusher comes into contact with the unfallen articles may be variable. 
     The furnace system described above may further include an inserting member configured to be inserted between a surface of the conveyor and the fallen articles to place the fallen articles thereon, the inserting member moving in a direction opposite from the direction toward the bridge to move the fallen articles on the inserting member in the direction opposite from the direction toward the bridge. 
     The furnace system described above may further include a push-out member configured to push out the fallen articles on the inserting member moving in the direction opposite from the direction toward the bridge onto the conveyor. 
     The furnace system described above may further include a separation guide configured to guide a direction of travel of the fallen articles transported by the conveyor to a different direction from a direction of travel of the unfallen articles. 
     In the furnace system described above, the discharging device may retract while supporting the articles while the pusher is pushing back the articles. 
     The furnace system described above may further be provided a discharge guide configured to impede the movement of the articles in the direction of travel of the conveyor while the discharging device or the pusher is pushing the articles. 
     Advantageous Effects of Invention 
     The present invention can provide a transport device and a furnace system capable of transporting a plurality of articles onto a conveyor while avoiding an influence of fallen articles. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic top view of a transport device according to a first embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 8  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 9  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 10  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 11  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the first embodiment. 
         FIG. 12  is a schematic top view of a transport device according to a reference example. 
         FIG. 13  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the reference example. 
         FIG. 14  is a schematic side view of a transport device according to a second embodiment. 
         FIG. 15  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the second embodiment. 
         FIG. 16  is a schematic top view of a transport device according to a third embodiment. 
         FIG. 17  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the third embodiment. 
         FIG. 18  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the third embodiment. 
         FIG. 19  is a schematic top view of the transport device according to the third embodiment. 
         FIG. 20  is a schematic side view of a transport device according to a fourth embodiment. 
         FIG. 21  is a schematic perspective view of the transport device according to the fourth embodiment. 
         FIG. 22  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the fourth embodiment. 
         FIG. 23  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the fourth embodiment. 
         FIG. 24  is a schematic perspective view of the transport device according to the fourth embodiment. 
         FIG. 25  is a schematic side view of the transport device according to the fourth embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     An embodiment of the present invention will be described below. In the following drawings, the same or similar parts are designated by the same or similar reference signs. However, the drawings are schematic illustrations. Therefore, specific dimensions or the like are to be determined based on the following description. In addition, the drawings may include parts having different dimensional relationships and ratios from each other as a matter of course. 
     First Embodiment 
     A transport device according to an embodiment includes: as illustrated in  FIG. 1 , a support  5  configured to allow a plurality of articles  20  to be arranged on top; a discharging device  30  configured to push the plurality of articles  20  arranged on the support  5 ; a conveyor  40  configured to transport articles pushed out from the support  5 ; and a pusher  80  configured to push back unfallen articles  20 A among the articles  20  pushed onto the conveyor  40  toward the support  5  to separate unfallen articles  20 A from fallen articles  20 Z on the conveyor  40 . 
     The support  5  includes, as illustrated in  FIG. 2 , a plate  10  disposed in a closed space  100 , and a bridge  50  of which at least part is disposed out of the closed space  100 . The bridge  50  is disposed between the plate  5  and the conveyor belt  40 . The closed space  100  may be provided, for example, by a furnace, a tank, a storage room, and the like. In the closed space  100 , at least one of a temperature and a pressure may be controlled. In the closed space  100 , at least one of temperature distribution and pressure distribution may be controlled. The furnace may be a freeze dry furnace. The closed space  100  may be released by a door or the like. In the following description, an example in which the furnace is a freeze dry furnace will be described. 
     Each of the plurality of articles  20  is, but not specifically limited to, a container, such as a vial, that stores pharmaceutical products to be subject, for example, to treatment such as freeze drying. In the following description, an example in which the articles  20  are vials will be described. Each of the plurality of articles  20  includes, for example, a cylindrical shape. The plurality of articles  20  may be arranged in a staggered manner (staggered arrangement) such that a larger number of articles  20  can be arranged on the plate  10 . In this case, the plurality of articles  20  are arranged in an overlapped manner when viewed from a side of a direction of travel of the discharging device  30 . The plurality of articles  20  are arranged such that centers are alternating with each other by row extending substantially parallel to the conveyor  40  when viewed from above. 
     For example, respective centers of the articles  20  in a second row are shifted with respect to the respective centers of the articles  20  in a first row on a conveyor  40  side in a direction of the row. However, the respective centers of the articles  20  in a third row are not generally shifted with respect to the respective centers of the articles  20  in the first row in the direction of the row. The centers of the plurality of articles  20  maybe recognized as being arranged at intersections of a triangle grid pattern. However, in this disclosure, a triangle forming the triangle grid pattern may be, and may not be a regular triangle. 
     The articles  20 , which are vials containing a drug therein, are carried into the freeze dry furnace on the plate  10  in a state of being semi-capped. The cap is made, for example, of an elastic material such as rubber. When the drug in the interior is freeze dried, an upper plate  11  disposed above the plate  10  in the freeze dry furnace moves downward and presses the caps that are semi-capping the vials to cap the vials, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . Alternatively, the vials may be capped by moving the plate  10  upward toward the upper plate  11  to bring the upper parts of the caps into contact with the upper plate  11 . Then, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the upper plate  11  is moved upward so that the vials can be carried out from the freeze dry furnace. Alternatively, the plate  10  may be moved downward so that the vials can be carried out from the freeze dry furnace. 
     When the plate  10  and the upper plate  11  move relatively away from each other, the caps of some vials stick fast to the upper plate  11 , and the some of the vials may be pulled up by the upper plate  11 . In this situation, the vial surrounded by other vials tends to drop to its original position without being fallen over, or to be held by the surrounding vials in a state of being suspended without being fallen over even when it is pulled up by the upper plate  11 . In contrast, as illustrated in  FIG. 5 , the vial that is not surrounded by other vials, like the vial in the first row on the conveyor  40  side, tends to drop and fall over when pulled up by the upper plate  11 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , a bridge  50  is disposed adjacent to the plate  10 . The conveyor  40  is disposed adjacent to the bridge  50 . When the plurality of articles  20  are taken out from the closed space  100  after capping has completed, the door of the furnace or the like that provides the closed space  100  is opened, and the discharging device  30  pushes out the plurality of articles  20  on the plate  10  toward the conveyor  40  via the bridge  50 . The discharging device  30  has, for example, a shape capable of coming into contact with an innermost row of the plurality of articles  20  in the closed space  100 . In other words, the discharging device  30  has a shape capable of coming into contact with the row of the articles  20  on the side opposite from the conveyor  40  among the plurality of articles  20  on the plate  10 . The shape of the discharging device  30  is, for example, a bar. The direction of travel of the discharging device  30  is, for example, parallel to upper surfaces of the plate  10  and the bridge  50 , and perpendicular to the direction of transport of the conveyor  40 . A guide  70  may be provided in a vicinity of the plate  10  and the bridge  50  to prevent the articles  20  pushed by the discharging device  30  from spreading laterally with respect to the direction of travel of the discharging device  30 . 
     The height of the conveyor  40  and the height of the bridge  50  are adjusted so that the articles  20  do not fall over. The discharging device  30  pushes a larger number of rows of the articles  20  than the number of rows of the articles  20  transported by the conveyor  40  each time onto the conveyor  40 . For example, if the number of rows of the articles  20  to be transported by the conveyor  40  each time is one, the discharging device  30  pushes predetermined two or more rows of the articles  20  onto the conveyor  40 . After the predetermined number of rows of the articles  20  are pushed onto the conveyor  40 , the discharging device  30  stops. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , the pusher  80  is set to a position higher than the fallen articles  20 Z among the articles  20  pushed out onto the conveyor  40 . The direction of travel of the pusher  80  is, for example, parallel to upper surfaces of the plate  10  and the bridge  50 , and perpendicular to the direction of transport of the conveyor  40 . After the discharging device  30  has pushed out a predetermined row of articles  20  onto the conveyor  40 , the pusher  80  moves toward the plate  10  and the bridge  50  and pushes back the articles  20 A standing upright without having fallen over among the articles  20  pushed out onto the conveyor  40  in a direction toward the plate  10  and the bridge  50 , as illustrated in  FIG. 7  and  FIG. 8 . While the pusher  80  pushes back the articles  20  on the conveyor  40  side, the discharging device  30  may cooperate with the pusher  80  and retract at the same speed as the speed of the pusher  80  while supporting the articles  20  by coming into contact with the row of the articles  20  in the last row, so that the row of articles  20  in the last row may not fall over. 
     Since the pusher  80  is disposed at a position higher than the fallen articles  20 Z, the pusher  80  does not come into contact with the fallen articles  20 Z and pass over the fallen articles  20 Z while pushing the unfallen articles  20 A. Therefore, the fallen articles  20 Z are not pushed by the pusher  80  and stay at the same positions on the conveyor  40 . Accordingly, as illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the unfallen articles  20 A are separated from the fallen articles  20 Z on the conveyor  40 . The pusher  80  stops when the articles  20  by the number of rows to be transported by the conveyor  40  each time remain on the conveyor  40  and retracts to a position where transport of the articles  20  on the conveyor  40  is not impeded, as illustrated in  FIG. 9 . Subsequently, as illustrated in  FIG. 10 , the conveyor  40  is activated and transports the unfallen articles  20 A and the fallen articles  20 Z. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 11 , the transport device according to the embodiment may further include a separation guide  91  configured to guide the direction of travel of the fallen articles  20 Z transported by the conveyor  40  to a direction different from the direction of travel of the unfallen articles  20 A. The separation guide  91  is disposed at a position on the conveyor  40 , to which the fallen articles  20 Z are transported. The fallen articles  20 Z come into contact with the separation guide  91 , and drop into, for example, a recycling bin  92  from the conveyor  40 . The separation guide  91  may support the unfallen articles  20 A from both sides and change the direction of travel of the unfallen articles  20 A while maintaining the row. 
     Now, as illustrated in  FIG. 12 , there is a case where the fallen articles  20 Z may collide against the unfallen articles  20 A and the unfallen articles  20 A may fall over if the conveyor  40  is activated without the fallen articles  20 Z separated from the unfallen articles  20 A. As illustrated in  FIG. 13 , the fallen articles  20 Z may be caught by a guide  191 , which may impede the transport of the articles  20 . 
     In contrast, the fallen articles  20 Z are separated from the unfallen articles  20 A on the conveyor  40  illustrated in  FIG. 9  according to the transport device of the embodiment, so that the probability of collision of the fallen articles  20 Z against the unfallen articles  20 A may be reduced. In addition, the fallen articles  20 Z may be inhibited from being caught by the guide for guiding the direction of travel of the unfallen articles  20 A. 
     Second Embodiment 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 14 , where d is a diameter of the articles  20 , w is a weight of the article  20 , p is a friction coefficient between the articles  20  and the conveyor  40 , h is a height of the pusher  80 , and f is a force of the pusher  80  pushing the articles  20 , and the articles  20  are assumed to have a cylindrical shape, the height h of the pusher  80  which does not cause isolated articles  20  to fall over is obtained by the expression (1) given below: 
         h &lt;( w·d )/(2 f )   (1).
 
     The force f needed for starting the movement of the articles  20  is obtained by the following expression (2): 
       f=μw   (2).
 
     Therefore, from the expressions (1) and (2) , the height h of the pusher  80  which does not cause isolated articles  20  to fall over is obtained by the following expression (3): 
         h&lt;d /(2μ)   (3).
 
     Therefore, the height h of the pusher  80  which does not cause the articles  20  to fall over tends to increase as the diameter d of the articles  20  increases. Likewise, the height h of the pusher  80  which does not cause the articles  20  to fall over tends to decrease as the friction coefficient p increases. In any cases, the articles  20  tend to be less likely to fall over as the height of the pusher  80  decreases. Therefore, as illustrated in  FIG. 15 , the height at which the pusher  80  comes into contact with the unfallen articles  20 Z may be variable within a range that does not cause the contact with the fallen articles  20 Z. When there is no fallen article  20 Z, the height at which the pusher  80  comes into contact with the unfallen articles  20 Z may be lowered as much as possible. The height h of the pusher  80  may be adjusted by, for example, a drive unit such as a motor to be controlled by a control device. 
     Third Embodiment 
     A transport device according to the embodiment may further include a discharge guide  85  configured to impede movement of the articles  20  in the direction of travel of the conveyor  40  while the discharging device  30  or the pusher  80  is pushing the articles  20  as illustrated in  FIG. 16 . The discharge guide  85  opposes both ends of the row of the articles  20 . The articles  20  may spread out on the conveyor  40  in the direction of the row when being pushed by the discharging device  30  or the pusher  80 . In contrast, the discharge guide  85  inhibits the articles  20  from spreading out in the direction of the row by coming into contact with the articles  20 . As illustrated in  FIG. 17  and  FIG. 18 , after the pusher  80  pushes back the unfallen articles  20 A, the discharge guide  85  is driven by a drive unit  86 , such as a motor, and is retracted to a position where transport of the articles  20  by the conveyor  40  is not impeded. Subsequently, as illustrated in  FIG. 19 , the articles  20  may be transported by the conveyor  40 . 
     Fourth Embodiment 
     A transport device according to the embodiment may further include an inserting member  90  to be inserted between a surface of the conveyor  40  and the fallen articles  20 Z, as illustrated in  FIG. 20  and  FIG. 21 . The inserting member  90  may have, for example, a sheet shape, and move on the surface of the conveyor  40 . The inserting member  90  is connected for example to the pusher  80  and moves together with the pusher  80 . As illustrated in  FIG. 22 , when the pusher  80  approaches the unfallen articles  20 A, the inserting member  90  is inserted between the surface of the conveyor  40  and the fallen articles  20 Z. Therefore, the fallen articles  20 Z are placed on the inserting member  90 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 23  and  FIG. 24 , when the pusher  80  has pushed the unfallen articles  20 A to a predetermined position, and then the pusher  80  is retracted in a direction opposite from a direction toward the plate  10  and the bridge  50 , the inserting member  90  is also retracted in the direction opposite from the direction toward the plate  10  and the bridge  50 . In association with these movements, the fallen articles  20 Z on the inserting member  90  are also moved in the direction opposite from the direction toward the plate  10  and the bridge  50 . Therefore, the fallen articles  20 Z may be moved away from the unfallen articles  20 A on the conveyor  40 . 
     The transport device according to the embodiment further includes a push-out member  95  configured to push out the fallen articles  20 Z on the inserting member  90  moving in the direction opposite from the direction toward the plate  10  and the bridge  50  onto the conveyor  40 , as illustrated in  FIG. 25 . When the inserting member  90  approaches the push-out member  95 , the fallen articles  20 Z on the inserting member  90  come into contact with the push-out member  95  and are pushed out from the inserting member  90  onto the conveyor  40 . The fallen articles  20 Z pushed out onto the conveyor  40  may be guided, for example, to the recycling bin  92  by the separation guide  91 , for example, as illustrated in  FIG. 11 . 
     Other Embodiments 
     Although the present invention has been described based on the embodiments as described above, description and drawings which constitute part of this disclosure should not be interpreted to limit the present invention. From this disclosure, various alternative embodiments, examples, and operational technologies will become apparent for those skilled in the art. For example, articles to be transported in or out of the furnace are not limited to those including pharmaceutical products, but may be articles such as food products, beverages, and precision parts, and may include any articles. The furnace is not limited to the freeze dry furnace, and may be a fermentation furnace, or any furnace which requires restraint of unevenness in temperature distribution or restraint of generation of dust in the interior. In this manner, it should be understood that the present invention includes various embodiments which are not described in this specification. 
     REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 
     
         
           10  . . . plate,  11  . . . upper plate,  20  . . . article  20 A . . . article,  20 Z . . . article,  30  . . . discharging device,  40  . . . conveyor,  50  . . . bridge,  70  . . . guide,  80  . . . pusher,  85  . . . discharge guide,  86  . . . drive unit,  90  . . inserting member,  91  . separation guide,  92  . . . recycling bin,  95  . . . push-out member,  100  . . . closed space,  191  . . . guide