阅读说明：本技术 箱斗卸载装置 (Box hopper unloading device ) 是由 M·L·富尔内 B·G·拉根 于 2019-10-15 设计创作，主要内容包括：一种物体卸载装置,包括箱斗组件,该箱斗组件包括在箱斗内的袋。箱斗组件由升降装置升起和降下,并且在升起时倾斜以将物体倾倒在诸如坡道之类的向下倾斜的输送装置上。被附接到袋的绞车使袋的底部移动通过箱斗,以帮助将物体推出倾斜的箱斗组件。相机拍摄进入坡道的物体的视频图像,以检测堆积。坡道上的止动件被选择性地致动,以阻挡堆积中的最底部物体,从而帮助使物体分开。(An object unloading apparatus includes a bucket assembly including a pocket within a bucket. The bucket assembly is raised and lowered by a lift device and, when raised, tilts to dump objects onto a downwardly inclined conveyor such as a ramp. A winch attached to the bag moves the bottom of the bag through the bucket to help push the object out of the tilted bucket assembly. The camera takes video images of objects entering the ramp to detect pile-up. Stops on the ramp are selectively actuated to block the bottommost object in the stack to help separate the objects.)

1. An object unloading device comprising:

a bucket having an interior and an open top defined by a rim;

a bag for containing objects, the bag having a bottom in the interior of the bucket and an opposite top edge portion;

a winch connected to the bag to raise and lower the bottom of the bag through the interior of the bin.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the winch comprises a plurality of winches outside the bucket and below the rim and a plurality of ropes wound thereon, wherein distal ends of the ropes are attached to the top edge portion of the bag such that as the ropes are wound around the winches, the top edge portion of the bag is pulled downward toward the winches to flip the bag over the rim of the bucket and move the bottom of the bag through the interior of the bucket toward the top opening.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the bottom of the bag is weighted to move downward through the interior of the bucket as the rope is paid out from the winch and to cause the bag to open in the interior of the bucket.

4. The device of claim 2, wherein the bag comprises a grommet along the top edge portion, the distal end of the cord being attached to the grommet.

5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the rim is made of a low friction surface or comprises rollers to reduce friction between the rim and the bag as the bag is pulled over the rim.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the bag comprises a flexible sheet attached to the rim of the bucket at the top edge portion, and the bottom of the bag is semi-rigid.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the winch comprises a plurality of winches and a plurality of ropes wound thereon, wherein distal ends of the ropes are attached to the bottom of the bag such that as the ropes are reeled around the winch the flexible sheet is pulled through the interior of the bucket as the bottom of the bag is pulled downward, and as the ropes are paid out from the winch the bottom of the bag is pulled through the interior of the bucket upward toward the top opening under tension in the pulled flexible sheet.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, including a tilting device connected to the bucket for tilting the bucket to a tilted position for discharging objects from the bag.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the winch raises the bottom of the bag when the bucket is in the tilted position.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, comprising a ramp having a conveying surface extending from an upper end to a lower end, the upper end receiving objects from the bucket being tilted, the objects traveling to the lower end.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10 including a lifting device that lifts the bucket above the level of the upper end of the ramp so that the tilting device tilts the bucket to unload objects onto the ramp.

12. The apparatus of claim 10 including retractable stops in the ramp, the stops being movable from a blocking position in which they extend outwardly from the conveying surface far enough to block the advancement of objects riding directly on the conveying surface but not to block the advancement of objects deposited atop the blocked objects, to an unblocking position in which they are retracted at or below the conveying surface to allow objects riding directly on the conveying surface to advance down the ramp.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, comprising a camera that takes video images of objects unloaded onto the ramp and a controller that resolves stacked objects from the video images and moves the stop to the blocking position to block lower ones of the stacked objects from proceeding down the ramp and moves the stop to the non-blocking position without stacked objects.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the winch uses a stop-and-go motion to shake the contents of the bag by moving the bottom of the bag stop-and-go.

15. An object unloading device comprising:

a bucket having an interior and an open top defined by a rim;

a pocket for containing an object in the interior of the bucket;

a winch connected to the bag to increase and decrease a volume of the bag in the interior of the bin.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the bag has a weighted bottom.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the bag has a top edge portion that rides on the rim, the winch comprising a plurality of winches outside the bucket and below the rim and a plurality of ropes wound around the winches, wherein distal ends of the ropes are attached to the top edge portion of the bag such that as the ropes are wound around the winches, the top edge portion of the bag is pulled downwardly towards the winches to flip the bag over the rim of the bucket.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the bag comprises a flexible sheet and has a semi-rigid bottom and a top edge portion attached to the rim of the bucket.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the winch comprises a plurality of winches and a plurality of ropes wound thereon, wherein distal ends of the ropes are attached to the bottom of the bag such that as the ropes are reeled around the winch the flexible sheet is pulled through the interior of the bucket as the bottom of the bag is pulled downward, and as the ropes are paid out from the winch the bottom of the bag is pulled through the interior of the bucket upward toward the top opening under tension in the pulled flexible sheet.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, comprising a tilting device connected to the bucket for tilting the bucket to a tilted position for unloading objects from the bag.

21. The apparatus of claim 20 including a ramp having a conveying surface extending from an upper end to a lower end, the upper end receiving objects from the bucket being tilted, the objects traveling to the lower end.

22. The apparatus according to claim 21 including a lifting device that lifts the bucket above the level of the upper end of the ramp so that the tilting device tilts the bucket to unload objects onto the ramp.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 including retractable stops in the ramp, the stops being movable from a blocking position in which they extend outwardly from the conveying surface far enough to block the advancement of objects riding directly on the conveying surface but not to block the advancement of objects deposited atop the blocked objects, to an unblocking position in which they are retracted at or below the conveying surface to allow objects riding directly on the conveying surface to advance down the ramp.

Technical Field

The present invention generally relates to devices for emptying a bucket of objects.

Background

Parcels accumulated in the bucket are typically unloaded by lifting the bucket above a downwardly inclined conveyor or chute from which the parcel is conveyed to a handling system, and then tipping the bucket to dump the parcel onto the conveyor or chute. The packages often fall from the bin in clumps or piles, and must be separated for disposal. Also, the package may be damaged by tipping.

Disclosure of Invention

One version of an object unloading apparatus embodying features of the invention comprises a bin having an interior and a top opening defined by a rim, a pocket for receiving an object, and a winch. The bag has a bottom in the interior of the bucket and an opposite top edge portion. The winch is connected to the bag to raise and lower the bottom of the bag through the interior of the bin.

Another version of an object unloading device embodying features of the invention comprises a bin having an interior and a top opening bounded by a rim, a bag for receiving objects in the interior of the bin, and a winch connected to the bag to increase and decrease the volume of the bag in the interior of the bin.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an isometric exploded view of an object unloading bin embodying features of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the bucket of FIG. 1 with the winch.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the drawworks of FIG. 2.

Fig. 4A and 4B are isometric views of the bucket of fig. 2, sequentially showing the inversion of the object-receiving pockets.

Fig. 5A-5C are side views of the bucket of fig. 2 in an unloading apparatus embodying features of the invention, showing the start of the lifting and unloading sequence.

Fig. 6A-6C are isometric views of the unloading device of fig. 5A-5C, showing the unloading sequence.

Fig. 7A-7D are side views of the slides of the device of fig. 6A-6C, showing the sequence of raising the stops to assist in separating the objects.

Fig. 8 is an isometric view of another version of a bucket that can be used with the unloading device as in fig. 5A-5C.

FIG. 9 is a dashed isometric view showing a winch for the bucket of FIG. 8.

Fig. 10A-10B are dashed isometric views of the bucket of fig. 8, showing a sequence of emptying the bucket.

Fig. 11A-11B are isometric views of the bucket of fig. 8 showing the sequence of dumping objects onto a ramp as in fig. 5A-5C.

Fig. 12 is a block diagram of a controller that can be used to control the unloading device as in fig. 5A-5C.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 shows a part of an object unloading apparatus embodying features of the invention. A bucket assembly 20 for holding parcels, letters, or other objects includes a bucket 22 and a pocket 24. The bucket 22 has an interior 26 bounded by side walls 28, the side walls 26 being formed by four side panels 30 so that the bucket is rectangular in cross section. However, the bucket 22 may have other cross-sections, such as a circular cross-section. The bucket interior 26 has a top opening 32 defined by a rim 34 along the top of the side walls 28. The edge 34 has rollers 36, 38 or rounded shoes at the corners and along the sides. Arms 40 extending downwardly from the bottom of bucket 22 at four corners terminate in pairs of brackets 42. A pair of pivot eyes 44 also extend downwardly from the bottom of bucket 22. The pocket 24 has a bottom 46 and an opposite top edge portion 48. A majority of the bag 24, including the bottom 46, is positioned within the interior 26 of the bucket 22 to receive objects. The top rim portion 48 rides on the bucket rim 34.

As shown in fig. 2, the top edge portion 48 of the bag 24 has a series of holes 50 that are reinforced with grommets 52. The rope 54 is wound on a winch 56 in the form of a motorized roller attached to the bracket 42 at opposite ends at the bottom corner of the bucket 22. Motorized roller 56 has an axis 55 parallel to the side of bucket 22. The distal end 58 of the cord 54 is attached to the top edge portion 48 of the bag 24 through the grommet 52 in the hole 50. The winch 56 rotates to take up the rope 54 and pull the top edge portion 48 of the bag 24 downwardly to draw it over the bucket rim 34 and move the bottom 46 of the bag and its contents through the interior 26 toward the top opening 32 of the bucket 22. Each winch 56 is shown as an elongated motorized roller that winds all of the rope 54 on its bucket 22 side. The elongated rollers could be replaced by individual motorized pulleys, one for each rope 54. The cord 54 may be, for example, a cable, a rope, a string, or a plastic wire. As shown in fig. 3, a motorized winch 56 is mounted for rotation between the carriages 42. A wire 60 extends from the end of the motorized winch 56 and through the bracket 42 to receive power to wind the winch.

The winch 56 and the rope 54 attached to the top edge portion 48 of the bag 24 form a motorized winch to turn the bag around the bucket 22 and reduce the volume of the bag in the interior 26 of the bucket, and return the bag to its un-turned state with increased volume in the interior of the bucket. The sequence of inverting the pockets 24 is in order from fig. 2 to fig. 4A and 4B. In fig. 4A, the bag 24 is shown approximately half-inverted, with the rope 54 being taken up by the winch 56. In fig. 4B, the bag 24 is fully inverted, with the bottom 46 of the bag 24 at the top of the bucket. Rollers or low friction rounded shoes along the bucket edges (fig. 1) provide rolling or low friction contact with the bag as it rides across the edges. The bottom 46 of the pocket 24 is weighted with a metal plate in the pocket (e.g., at the bottom). The weighted bottom 46 helps keep the bag 24 open and helps pay out the rope 54 from the winch under the force of gravity to return the bag to its non-inverted state inside the bucket.

Bucket assembly 20 is shown in fig. 5A-5C in an unloading device 62, with fig. 5A-5C depicting the lifting and unloading sequence. The pouch 24 is shown in an un-inverted state. Bucket 22 is tiltably connected to pivot bracket 64 at the distal end of cantilevered frame 66. A pivot rod 68 extends through pivot bracket 64 and the pivot eye (pivot eye 44 in fig. 1) of bucket 22. A tilt actuator 70 is pivotally attached between the cantilevered frame 66 and a pivot 72 on the bucket 22 to form a tilting device. The cantilevered frame 66 is attached at its proximal end 74 to a lifting device 76, which lifting device 76 raises and lowers the frame and bucket assembly 20 between a lowered position, as shown in fig. 5A, and a raised position, as shown in fig. 5B. Once the bucket assembly is lifted as shown in fig. 5B, the bucket assembly is then tilted by the tilting device as shown in fig. 5C. Tilt actuator 70 extends its piston arm 78 to tilt bucket assembly 20 about pivot rod 68 to dump the object, as further illustrated in the sequence shown in fig. 6A-6C.

In fig. 6A, raised bucket assembly 20 is shown tilted in a tilted position with bag 24 in a fully un-flipped position. The object 80 begins to fall from the bag 24 onto a downwardly inclined ramp or ramp 82. To assist in further emptying the bag 24 of its contents, the winch 56 begins to wind the bag so that the bottom 46 of the bag moves through the interior of the bucket 22 toward the top opening 32 thereof, as shown in FIG. 6B. The moving bottom 46 pushes the object 80 out of the pocket 24. The winch 56 continues to wind the bag 24 until the bottom 46 of the bag is at the top of the bin 22 and all of the objects 80 have been unloaded onto the ramp 82, as shown in FIG. 6C. The objects 80 slide off the ramp 82 onto a feed conveyor 84 for feeding to a downstream processing system. The bucket assembly is returned to its lowered position by the tilting means and then lowered by the lifting means to its lowered position while the bag is returned to its non-inverted position. The winch may be operated in a stop-and-go (stop-and-go) action to shake the objects with a bottom stop-and-go action and help to lift the objects off the bucket assembly when the bag is being rolled into the inverted position.

As shown in FIG. 7A, objects 80 falling from the bucket assembly 20 typically land on the upper end 86 of the ramp 82, are stacked on top of each other, or are stacked 98 against each other. A camera 90 mounted above the upper end 86 of the ramp 82 produces a video image of the object 80 dumped from the bucket assembly 20. The stopper actuator 92 moves a stopper 94 (e.g., a bumper pad (bumpers)) from a non-blocking position (as in fig. 7A) to a blocking position (as in fig. 7B and 7C) if a pile or stack of objects is detected from the video image. In the blocking position, the stop 94 projects above an outer conveying surface 96 of the ramp 82. The stop 94 blocks the advancement of an object riding in direct contact with the outer surface 96 of the ramp 82. As shown in fig. 7C, the jolts caused by the downward slope of the ramp and the sudden stop of the bottom object against the stop 94 tend to cause an object 80' stacked on top of or having a leading edge against the lower blocked object to slide off the blocked object onto the top of the stop. Once the video images produced by the camera 90 detect that the objects are not stacked or stacked, the stop actuator 92 deactivates the stop 94 and returns it to a non-blocking position at or below the conveying surface 96 of the ramp 82, as shown in fig. 7D.

Another version of a bucket assembly is shown in fig. 8 and 9. The bucket assembly 100 includes a bucket 102, which in this example is shown as having a rounded rectangular shape. The bag 104, which is formed of a stretchable material, has a semi-rigid center 106, and the bag 104 is attached to a rim 108 of the bucket 102 at a top edge 110 of the bag. As shown in fig. 9, where the bucket 102, bag 104 and its center 106 are transparent, the center of the bag is attached to the winch. In this example, the drawworks includes four motorized pulleys 112 as reels. Each pulley 112 has a sheave 114 that is rotated by a motor 116. A cord 118 wrapped around the pulley sheave 114 is attached at its distal end to an eyelet 120 on the semi-rigid center 106, the semi-rigid center 106 serving as the bottom of the bag 104. In fig. 9, bag 104 is shown stretched by winding rope 118 around pulley winch 112. As the winch 112 pays out the rope 118 in the sequential order shown in fig. 10A and 10B, the tension in the stretched bag material pulls the bottom 106 (semi-rigid center) up through the interior 122 of the bucket 102 to the top rim 108 of the bucket 102. In fig. 10B, the bag 104 is shown in its relaxed, unstretched (or minimally stretched) state, wherein the bottom 106 is approximately at the level (or height) of the bucket rim 108. Fig. 11A and 11B show the object 80 being ejected from the bin assembly 100 onto the ramp 82 by virtue of the tension in the stretched bag 104 being released as the winch line is paid out and the bottom 106 of the bag moving towards the rim 108 of the bin reducing the volume of the bag in the interior 122 of the bin 102. The winch 112 may be operated to release the stretchable bag material in steps by free rotation of the winch followed by braking of the winch to rock the object 80. The bucket assembly 100 of fig. 8 may be used in place of the bucket assembly 20 of fig. 2 with the tilting device 70 and the lifting device 76 of fig. 5A.

As shown in fig. 12, the operation of the package unloading device may be controlled by a control system. Controller 124 controls the off-load device and controller 24 is, for example, a programmable logic controller or general purpose computer programmed to operate the off-load device. The controller 124 sends lift signals 126 to the motorized lift device 76 to raise and lower the bucket assembly. The controller 124 sends a winch signal 128 to the winch winches 56, 112 to move the bottom of the bag through the interior of the bucket. The controller 124 sends a tilt signal 130 to the tilt actuator 70 to tilt and return the bucket assembly. Also, the controller 124 sends a blocking signal to the actuator 92 in response to the video image 132 captured by the camera 90 to block the bottommost object in the stack of objects to separate the stack.

The features of the present invention have been described with reference to several versions, but other versions are possible. For example, the motor and actuator may be implemented as a pneumatic actuator, a hydraulic actuator, an electromagnetic actuator, or a linear actuator. Also, the object may be a package, letter, aggregate, or other object. Further, the stretchable material of the bag in fig. 8 may be permanently or removably attached to the rim of the bucket by using, for example, zippers, snaps, or bolts. Accordingly, as these few examples suggest, the scope of the claims is not meant to be limited to the details of the illustrative versions.