JP4598101B2 - Mushroom inoculum inoculation device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a mushroom seed inoculation device for automatically inoculating a solid inoculum or liquid inoculum into a cultivation container.

  Inoculum is used in the artificial cultivation of mushrooms such as enoki mushrooms, bean mushrooms, maitake mushrooms, nameko, and eringi. The seed fungus is a fungus that is obtained by culturing a secondary mycelium of mushrooms in a solid medium or liquid medium based on sawdust and chips, and is like a seed when compared to a plant. Mushrooms can be harvested by inoculating this inoculum into the medium and passing through the manufacturing process (culture process, generation process, breeding process) of mushrooms (fruit bodies).

  When cultivating mushrooms using a bottle-shaped cultivation container, a container (cage) for storing a certain number of cultivation containers is used. The container normally contains 25 (1 row x 5 rows) cultivation containers, but depending on the size of the cultivation container and the container size, 12 (1 row x 4 rows) or 16 A book (4 rows per row x 4 rows) or 36 (rows per row x 6 rows), etc. are appropriately accommodated.

  The cultivation container is filled with medium such as sawdust, corn cob, rice bran, etc., the lid is closed and the sterilization process is performed. Grow. In both cases of solid inoculum and liquid inoculum, since it is necessary to inoculate a large number of cultivation containers, inoculation is automatically performed using a machine.

For example, Patent Document 1 includes a lid opening / closing device that opens and closes a lid of a cultivation container, and a mushroom inoculum inoculation device that includes an inoculum filling device that fills the cultivation container with the lid opened by the lid opening / closing device. The lid opening / closing device includes a movable clamping member and a stationary clamping member that can clamp the lid from the upper surface and the lower surface thereof, and a clamp that advances and retracts the movable clamping member and clamps and releases the lid between the both clamping members. There is described a mushroom inoculum inoculation device, comprising: an attachment member opening / closing means; and an advance / retreat operation means for moving the both sandwiching members and the sandwiching member opening / closing means forward and backward with respect to the lid opening / closing position of the cultivation container. .
JP-A-5-103542

  However, FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a conventional mushroom inoculum inoculation device, in which (a) shows the inoculation of solid inoculum, and (b) shows the inoculation of liquid inoculum, as shown in this figure. In addition, since the conventional machine inoculation is opened halfway so as to rotate the lid 1a to the side of the container body 1b, the inoculation tip of the inoculation machine (hopper B or Nozzle C) is entered and inoculated. Thus, since the lid 1a in the open state is in the way, the inoculation work can be performed only for one row or the two rows with the row interval, and the work efficiency is poor.

  In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a mushroom seed inoculation device that allows a cap that is temporarily opened at the time of inoculation not to interfere with the inoculation operation and can inoculate a large number of cultivation containers at the same time.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a conveying means for intermittently conveying a container in which a plurality of cultivation containers composed of a lid and a container main body are aligned in a vertical and horizontal direction, and a plurality of cultivation containers on the conveying means. A lid opening / closing means for vertically moving the lid of the container to open and close the opening of the container main body, and horizontally entering the space between the lid and the container main body in the raised position into the plurality of container main bodies. A mushroom seed inoculation device comprising an inoculation means for inoculating the inoculum.

  The lid opening / closing means raises the lid in the vertical direction while keeping the lid horizontal, so that a space is formed between the lid and the opening of the container body. Since the lid is not in a standing position as in the past, it does not obstruct the entry of the inoculation means. Moreover, since the inoculation means moves horizontally from the side, the inoculation means can be entered from any of the front, rear, left and right directions using the space between the lid and the opening of the container body. Therefore, inoculating a plurality of inoculation means or providing a plurality of inoculation ports makes it possible to inoculate a large number of container bodies during transportation at once. Simultaneous inoculation is possible for each container.

  The inoculation means is provided on the transport means and upstream and / or downstream of the lid opening / closing means, and is provided at a position higher than the lid of the closed cultivation container. By providing it on the conveyance path, space saving can be achieved. Moreover, since the inoculation means is provided at a position higher than the lid of the cultivation container in the closed posture, the conveyance of the cultivation container is not disturbed.

  The lid opening / closing means includes a lid holding mechanism that detachably holds the lid, a pressing portion that presses the lid against the opening of the container body, a vertical movement mechanism that moves the lid holding mechanism and the pressing portion up and down, and an upward movement of the lid And a pressing part for restricting the rise of the container body. The lid holding mechanism may be engaged with and held by the lower surface or convex portion of the lid, and the engagement may be released to release the holding. Alternatively, the suction may be held by a suction cup or suction, and the suction may be canceled by air or the like. Further, the lid may be detachably held by turning on / off the magnetic force. The lid holding mechanism is not limited to the above.

  Specifically, the lid holding mechanism is composed of a plurality of gripping pins having claws at the lower end and a slide mechanism for moving the gripping pins, and the plurality of gripping pins are adjacent to each other in a collective posture approaching each other. What is necessary is just to intervene in the space part between the lid | covers of four cultivation containers, and to engage with a lid | cover by moving the said nail | claw to the lower side of a lid | cover in the spaced apart attitude | position. By setting the grip pin in the separated posture, the claw can be engaged with the lid and the lid can be held. Further, by setting the gripping pins to the collective posture, it is possible to release the engagement of the claws with the lid and release the holding of the engagement lid.

  According to the present invention, the lid opening / closing means raises the lid in the vertical direction while keeping the lid horizontal, so that a space is formed between the lid and the opening of the container body. By using this space, the inoculation means can be entered from any of the front, rear, left and right directions. Therefore, it is possible to inoculate a large number of container bodies during transportation at once.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the mushroom seed inoculation device of the present embodiment, FIG. 2 is a side view of the mushroom seed inoculation device of the present embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a view of the mushroom seed inoculation device of the present embodiment as viewed from above. (A) is a diagram showing a state before the inoculation means enters, (b) is a diagram showing a state where the inoculation means have entered, and FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the lid holding mechanism of the present embodiment. (A) is a diagram showing a state before gripping, (b) is a diagram showing a gripping state, FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the lid holding mechanism of this embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a diagram of the lid holding mechanism of this embodiment. FIGS. 7A and 7B are perspective views, FIG. 7A is a diagram illustrating a state before gripping, FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating a gripping state, and FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a lid holding process according to the present embodiment; ) Is a diagram showing a state before gripping, (b) is a diagram showing a gripping state, (c) is a diagram showing a state of being moved upward by a vertical movement mechanism, and FIG. 8 is FIG. 7 (c). It is a diagram showing a state in which viewed from the side side. In FIG. 3, the lid opening / closing means 3 is omitted. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the lower plate 10 and the grip pins 11 and 12.

  As shown in the schematic diagram of FIG. 1, the mushroom inoculum in this embodiment opens and closes the opening 1 c of the container body 1 b by vertically moving the lids 1 a of the plurality of cultivation containers 1 on the conveying means in the vertical direction, The inoculation means 4 is horizontally entered from the side into the space between the lid 1a and the container body 1b in the ascending posture to inoculate the inoculum. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the mushroom inoculum inoculation device includes a plurality of containers A in which a plurality of cultivation containers 1 including a lid 1 a and a container body 1 b are accommodated in a vertical and horizontal arrangement. The first and second rows of cultivation containers 1 on the conveying means 2 are vertically moved in the vertical direction to open and close the opening 1c of the container body 1b. Inoculation for inoculating the inoculum into the plurality of single row × multiple rows of container main bodies 1b by horizontally entering and moving laterally into the space X between the lid opening / closing means 3 and the raised lid 1a and the container main body 1b. Means 4. The conveying means 2 is intermittently operated by a motor (not shown).

  In addition, as the cultivation container 1, the general thing which fits the lid | cover 1a to the opening 1c of the container main body 1b can be used. Moreover, in this embodiment, although the case where 25 (5 x 5 rows) cultivation containers 1 are accommodated in the container A will be described, depending on the size of the cultivation container 1 and the size of the container A, 12 ( 4 pieces x 3 rows), 16 pieces (4 pieces x 4 rows), 36 pieces (1 row 6 pieces x 6 rows), etc. can be accommodated as appropriate.

  The lid opening / closing means 3 vertically moves the lid holding mechanism 5 that detachably holds the lid 1a, the pressing portion 6 that presses the lid 1a against the opening 1c of the container body 1b, and the lid holding mechanism 5 and the pressing portion 6. It has the up-and-down moving mechanism 7 and the press part 8 for controlling the raise of the container main body 1b at the time of the raise movement of the lid | cover 1a.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the lid holding mechanism 5 includes an upper plate 9 and a lower plate 10, a plurality of holding pins 11 and 12 erected on one side of each plate 9 and 10, and adjacent holding pins 11. , 12 and a slide mechanism 13 for slidably moving.

  The plurality of gripping pins 11 and 12 are erected vertically and horizontally on one surface side of the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10, respectively. Each gripping pin 11, 12 is fixed at the tip with a claw 14 having a larger diameter than the pin base protruding in the lateral direction. The holding pin 11 of the upper plate 9 is longer than the holding pin 12 of the lower plate 10 by the thickness of the lower plate 10, and when the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10 are overlapped as described later, The grip pins 11 and 12 are set so that the tip positions thereof are aligned.

  The lower plate 10 is formed with a plurality of long holes 15 aligned vertically and horizontally. The long hole 15 is formed long in a direction (width direction) orthogonal to the transport direction. The long holes 15 are formed between the holding pins 12 of the lower plate 10, and the long holes 15 and the holding pins 12 are alternately formed. Then, the upper plate 9 is overlapped from one side where the holding pin 12 of the lower plate 10 is not formed, and the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10 are inserted by inserting the holding pin 11 of the upper plate 9 into the long hole 15. Are integrated.

  The slide mechanism 13 slides the grip pins 11 and 12 and engages and holds the claws of the grip pins 11 and 12 with the lower surface of the lid 1a. The slide mechanism 13 includes arms 16a and 16b extending at the widthwise ends of the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10, and a convex portion 17a provided at the tips of the arms 16a and 16b of the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10. , 17b, and a motor (not shown) for rotating the rotary plate 18 about its axis. The motor is fixed to the support plate 19. The rotating plate 18 is a long plate in which U-shaped grooves 18a are cut out at both ends, and a central shaft 18b of the rotating plate 18 is connected to a motor (not shown), and as shown in FIGS. By pivoting left and right around the axis, the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10 can be slid relative to each other in the left-right direction. Therefore, as the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10 are slid, the holding pin 11 of the upper plate 9 moves in the long hole 15 of the lower plate 10, so that the holding pin 11 and the lower plate of the upper plate 9 are moved. The ten gripping pins 12 can be slid in a manner that they can be moved close to and away from each other.

  Specifically, the two gripping pins 11 and 12 are separated from each other after intervening in the space between the lids of the four adjacent cultivation containers in a gathering posture in which the two holding pins 11 and 12 are close to each other (FIG. 4 (a)). In the separated posture, the claw 14 is moved below the lid 1a and engaged with the lower side of the lid 1a (FIG. 4B). One lid 1a is supported by four grip pins 11 and 12 at four points. The grip pins 11 and 12 support the two lids 1a adjacent to each other in the transport direction, and the number of parts can be reduced by using the grip pins 11 and 12 in this way.

  The vertical movement mechanism 7 includes a support plate 19 on which the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10 are placed, a support rod 20 that penetrates and supports the end of the support plate 19, and a support plate 19 that moves up and down with respect to the support rod 20. It is comprised from the air cylinder (not shown) to move.

  A long hole 21 that is long in the width direction is formed in the support plate 19, and the holding pin 11 of the upper plate 9 and the holding pin 12 of the lower plate 10 are inserted into the long hole 21. The lower plate 10 is placed. Since the hole of the support plate 19 is a long hole, the movement of the holding pins 11 and 12 of the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 10 is not hindered.

  A plurality of pressing portions 6 are formed in a convex shape on the lower surface of the support plate 19. By this pressing portion 6, the lid 1a can be pressed against the opening 1c of the container body 1b.

  The pressing portion 8 is a rod-shaped member, and is fixed to the support rod 20 so as to be in contact with the shoulder portion of the container main body 1b. In addition, you may make it the press part 8 raise / lower with the raising / lowering apparatus which is not shown separately from raising / lowering of the lid | cover 1a. By the holding | suppressing part 8, it can prevent that the container main body 1b raises with the raise movement of the lid | cover 1a.

  The inoculation means 4 is installed on the conveyor of the transport means 2 and upstream and downstream of the lid opening / closing means 3. Of course, the lid opening / closing means 3 may be provided on the left and right sides. The inoculation unit 4 includes a rail 22 provided on the conveyor of the transport unit 2, a tank 23 that moves back and forth on the rail 22, and a plurality of nozzles 24 that extend from the tank 23. Since the rail 22 is formed at a position higher than the lid 1a of the cultivation container 1 in the closed posture, the cultivation container 1 does not collide with the rail during transportation. A plurality of nozzles 24 are provided according to the number of cultivation containers 1. The nozzle 24 is set at a position lower than the lid a in the raised posture, and can enter the space X between the lid 1a in the raised posture and the container body 1b.

  FIG. 7 and FIG. 7 show the step of inoculating a plurality of cultivation containers (one row × 5 rows = 25 rows) in a container moving on the transport means at a time using the mushroom inoculum device having the above-described configuration. 8 will be used for explanation.

  A plurality of accommodated containers A in which a plurality of cultivation containers 1 composed of a lid 1a and a container main body 1b are accommodated in the vertical and horizontal directions are conveyed from upstream to downstream by the conveyor of the conveying means 2. When it reaches below the lid opening / closing means 3 (the position of the container in FIG. 2), the operation of the conveyor is temporarily stopped.

  Next, the lid holding mechanism 5 is lowered by the vertical movement mechanism 7. At this time, the two holding pins 11 and 12 of the lid holding mechanism 5 intervene in a rhombus-shaped space between the lids 1a of the four adjacent cultivation containers 1 in an assembled posture close to each other (FIG. 7 ( a) and FIG. 4 (a)).

  The slide mechanism 13 causes the grip pins 11 and 12 to slide in accordance with the slide movement of the upper plate 9 and the lower plate 19 due to the rotation of the rotary plate 18 so that the grip pins 11 and 12 are separated from each other. In the posture, the claws 14 of the grip pins 11 and 12 are moved to the lower side of the lid 1a and engaged (FIGS. 7B and 4B). One lid 1a is supported by four grip pins 11 and 12 at four points.

  The vertical movement mechanism 7 raises the 25 lids 1 a together with the lid holding mechanism 5 (FIG. 7C). At this time, since the pressing portion 8 is in contact with the shoulder portion of the container main body 1b, it is possible to prevent the container main body 1b from rising as the lid 1a moves upward, and to raise only the lid 1a and open the lid. it can. Then, the nozzle 24 of the inoculation means 4 moves on the rail 22 and horizontally enters the space between the lid 1a and the container body 1b in the ascending posture from the side, and enters the openings 1c of the plurality of container bodies 1b. The inoculum is inoculated inside (FIG. 7 (c), FIG. 8).

  After the inoculation, the inoculation means 4 moves back to the original position (position on FIG. 2), and the lid holding mechanism 5 is lowered by the vertical movement mechanism 7. Since the lid 1a is pressed against the opening 1c of the container body 1b by the pressing portion 6, the lid is closed. Then, the holding pins 11 and 12 that have taken the separated posture are brought into a gathering posture in which the holding pins 11 and 12 are brought close to each other by the slide mechanism 13, and the engagement between the lower side of the lid 1a and the claw 14 is released. The Then, the lid holding mechanism 5 is raised by the vertical movement mechanism 7. Again, the conveyor is turned on and the container A is transported.

  In this way, the plurality of lids 1a are lifted all at once, and the inoculation means 4 is entered from the space between the raised lid 1a and the container main body 1b to inoculate the plurality of container main bodies 1b at a time. it can. By repeating such an operation, it is possible to automatically inoculate a large number of cultivation containers. Therefore, according to the present invention, the conventional inoculation time can be greatly shortened (1/2 to 1/3), the opening time of the cap part can be shortened, and the risk of contamination with germs can be significantly reduced.

Schematic of the mushroom inoculum inoculation device of this embodiment The figure which saw the mushroom inoculum device of this embodiment from the side It is the figure which looked at the mushroom inoculum device of this embodiment from the upper part, Comprising: (a) is a figure which shows the state before an inoculation means approachs, (b) is a figure which shows the state which the inoculation means entered. It is a figure which shows the cover holding mechanism of this embodiment, Comprising: (a) is a figure which shows the state before gripping, (b) is a figure which shows a gripping state Exploded perspective view of the lid holding mechanism of the present embodiment It is a perspective view of the lid holding mechanism of this embodiment, (a) is a diagram showing a state before gripping, (b) is a diagram showing a gripping state It is a figure which shows the process of the lid | cover holding | maintenance of this embodiment, Comprising: (a) is a figure which shows the state before holding, (b) is a figure which shows a holding state, (c) is moved upwards by a vertical movement mechanism. Figure showing the state The figure which shows the state which looked at FIG.7 (c) from the side side It is the schematic of the conventional mushroom inoculum inoculation apparatus, (a) is a figure which shows inoculation of a solid inoculum, (b) is a figure which shows inoculation of a liquid inoculum

Explanation of symbols

A Container 1 Cultivation container 1a Lid 1b Container body 1c Opening 2 Transport means 3 Lid opening / closing means 4 Inoculation means 5 Lid holding mechanism 6 Pressing part 7 Vertical movement mechanism 8 Pressing part 9 Upper plate 10 Lower plate 11, 12 Grasping pin 13 Slide Mechanism 14 Claw 15 Slot 16 Arm 17 Convex 18 Rotating plate 19 Support plate 20 Support rod 22 Rail 23 Tank 24 Nozzle

Claims (3)

A conveying means for intermittently conveying a container in which a plurality of cultivation containers composed of a lid and a container main body are aligned vertically and horizontally, and a plurality of rows of cultivation container lids on the conveying means are vertically moved up and down. A lid opening / closing means that opens and closes the opening of the container main body, and a plurality of nozzles horizontally enter the space between the lid and the container main body in the ascending posture so that the liquid inoculum is introduced into the plurality of container main bodies. for example Bei and vaccination means that vaccination to,
The lid opening / closing means includes a lid holding mechanism that detachably holds the lid, a pressing portion that presses the lid against the opening of the container body, a vertical movement mechanism that moves the lid holding mechanism and the pressing portion up and down, and an upward movement of the lid A holding part for restricting the rise of the container body at the time,
The lid holding mechanism is composed of a plurality of gripping pins each having a claw at a lower end thereof, and a slide mechanism for moving the gripping pins. Open the lids of this multi-row cultivation container,
The space between the lid of the four cultivation containers adjacent, intervene in the set position where the two gripping pins are close to each other city,
In remote position away from each other, the claws of one of the gripping pin is moved to the lower side between the two lid adjacent one of the lid of the four cultivation vessel, the other of said gripping pins Let the nail engage the lid under the gap between the two adjacent lids remaining among the lids of the four cultivation containers ,
The inoculation means has a plurality of nozzles according to the number of the plurality of multiple rows of cultivation containers, and inoculates the plurality of multiple rows of container bodies to inoculate the mushroom inoculum. A plurality of the holding pins are arranged vertically and horizontally on one surface side of the upper plate and the lower plate, and by inserting the holding pins of the upper plate from the other surface side into a plurality of long holes formed in the lower plate, The upper and lower plates are stacked and integrated,
  The mushroom inoculum according to claim 1, wherein the slide mechanism switches between a gathering posture and a separation posture of the gripping pins by sliding the upper plate and the lower plate relative to each other. The inoculum means is a on the conveying means disposed upstream and / or downstream of the cover opening and closing device, according to claim 1 or, characterized in that provided at a position higher than the lid of cultivation containers closed position mushroom seed inoculation device according to 2.

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