CN115461273A

CN115461273A - Filling device

Info

Publication number: CN115461273A
Application number: CN202180030301.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 江村淳一
Original assignee: Mitsuboshi Kogyo Co Ltd
Current assignee: Mitsuboshi Kogyo Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-01-18
Filing date: 2021-12-23
Publication date: 2022-12-09
Also published as: WO2022153581A1; KR20220153638A; JPWO2022153816A1; WO2022153816A1; US20230339630A1

Abstract

The object is to provide a filling device with a simple structure, which can improve the production efficiency when filling a paste material into a syringe. As a solution, the filling device (1) of the invention fills a paste material into a syringe (50) from a 1 st opening (52) provided in the syringe (50), wherein the filling device comprises: a stage (12); a rotating table (20) which is rotatably provided on the stage (12), holds the syringe (50) detachably, and is positioned at a predetermined position by rotational movement; and a material supply part (40) for supplying the material, wherein the stage (12) has a supply port (14) communicated with the material supply part (40), and a 1 st position (20A) for mounting the syringe (50) on the turntable (20) and a 2 nd position (20B) for communicating the 1 st opening (52) of the syringe (50) with the supply port (14) are set as the predetermined positions.

Description

Filling device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a filling device, and more particularly, to a filling device for filling a syringe with a paste-like material.

Background

Conventionally, a filling device for filling a syringe with a paste-like material is known. Examples of such a material include a paste-like fluid having a higher viscosity than a liquid, which is used in the fields of pharmaceuticals, chemical materials, foods, paints, semiconductor device materials, and the like.

Here, when air bubbles are mixed in the above-described material, the air bubbles cause variations in the amount of discharge from the syringe, non-discharge, or product defects caused by the variations, and therefore, a filling device in which air bubbles are less likely to be mixed when filling the syringe has been studied. As an example, a filling device has been developed in which a syringe is filled with a paste-like material in a vacuum chamber after pressure reduction (see patent document 1: japanese patent application laid-open No. 2018-203375).

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1 Japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2018-203375 No.

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

According to the filling device exemplified in patent document 1, since the syringe can be filled with the paste-like material in the vacuum chamber after the pressure reduction, it is possible to prevent air bubbles from being mixed into the filled material. On the other hand, since the vacuum chamber needs to be depressurized, the following restrictions are imposed: the process of filling the syringe accommodated in the vacuum chamber with the material must be performed in a batch process. That is, this restriction becomes a factor that makes it difficult to improve the production efficiency.

Means for solving the problems

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a filling device having a simple structure, which can improve production efficiency when filling a syringe with a paste-like material.

The present invention solves the above problems by the following solving means.

A filling device for filling a syringe with a paste-like material from a 1 st opening provided in the syringe, the filling device comprising: an object stage; a rotary table rotatably provided on the stage, holding the syringe detachably and positioning the syringe at a predetermined position by a rotational movement; and a material supply unit configured to supply the material, wherein the stage has a supply port communicating with the material supply unit, and a 1 st position at which the syringe is attached to the turntable and a 2 nd position at which the 1 st opening of the syringe communicates with the supply port are set as the predetermined position.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

According to the present invention, a filling device having a simple structure can be realized, and when filling a syringe with a material, a step of batch processing can be eliminated, and the filling can be performed through a step of continuous processing, so that the production efficiency can be improved.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a filling device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of a rotary table of the filling device shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing an example of a rotary table of the filling device shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line V-V of fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along line VI-VI of fig. 4.

Fig. 7 is a front sectional view showing an example of a syringe filled with a material using the filling device shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of an adapter for holding the syringe shown in fig. 6 on a turntable.

Fig. 9 is a sectional view taken along line IX-IX of fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is a perspective view showing an example of a filling device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XI-XI of fig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a rotary table of the filling device shown in fig. 10.

Fig. 13 is a perspective view showing an example of the piping part and the pressurizing part of the filling device shown in fig. 10.

Fig. 14A and 14B are a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing an example of the detection set portion of the filling device shown in fig. 10.

Fig. 15 is a sectional view showing an example of the air discharging mechanism of the filling device shown in fig. 10.

Detailed Description

(first embodiment)

The filling device 1 of the present embodiment is a device for filling a syringe 50 held by a turntable 20 with a pasty filling material (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as "material") fed from a material supply unit 40. Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a perspective view (schematic view) showing a configuration example of a filling device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 2 is a sectional view (schematic view) taken along line II-II of fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view (schematic view) showing a configuration example of the periphery of the turntable 20 of the filling device 1 shown in fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a plan view (schematic view) of the turntable 20. Fig. 5 and 6 are a sectional view taken along line V-V and a sectional view taken along line VI-VI of fig. 4, respectively. In all the drawings for describing the embodiments, members having the same functions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof may be omitted. As a structural material of the device, a general structural material (a metal material, a resin material) is used unless otherwise specified.

First, the configuration of the syringe 50 filled with the material using the filling device 1 of the present embodiment will be described in detail. As shown in fig. 7, the syringe 50 has a 1 st opening 52 having a relatively small inner diameter at one end and a 2 nd opening 54 having a relatively large inner diameter at the other end. In the present embodiment, the material is filled from the 1 st opening 52 of the syringe 50 into the inside (however, the material may be filled from the 2 nd opening 54). The plunger 56 (see fig. 5 and 6) is slidably fitted into the second opening 54. The plunger 56 is a member that closes the 2 nd opening 54 and is pushed when the filling material is sent out from the 1 st opening 52. The material for forming the syringe 50 and the plunger 56 is not particularly limited, and is formed using a resin material appropriately selected according to the properties of the filler and the like.

Here, a screw portion 52a is provided in the 1 st opening 52 of the syringe 50, and a cap (not shown) can be fitted into the screw portion. Further, as an example of the screw portion 52a, a structure in which the 1 st opening 52 is formed in a single-layer cylindrical shape (single cylindrical shape) and the screw portion 52a is provided on the inner periphery or the outer periphery thereof, or a structure in which the 1 st opening 52 is formed in a double-layer cylindrical shape and the screw portion 52a is provided on the inner periphery of the outer cylinder thereof, and the latter structure is exemplified in the present embodiment.

Next, the structure of the filling device 1 of the present embodiment will be described in detail. As shown in fig. 1 to 6, the filling device 1 includes: an object stage 12; a rotary table 20 which is rotatably provided on the stage 12 and holds the syringe 50 detachably; and a material supply unit 40 that supplies a material.

The turntable 20 is configured to rotate on the stage 12, and to be positioned at a "predetermined position" and stopped. As the "predetermined position", at least the following two positions are set. Specifically, the 1 st position 20A of the syringe 50 and the 2 nd position 20B of the syringe 50 filled with the material are attached to and detached from the turntable 20. In the present embodiment, the syringe 50 is attached to and detached from the 1 st position 20A, but the syringe 50 may be attached to the 1 st position 20A at least, and may be detached from another position such as the 4 th position 20D described later, for example.

For example, the turntable 20 is rotationally driven by pulse control using a stepping motor 26 as a rotational driving mechanism. In addition, the origin reset operation is executed only when the power is turned on, and accurate start position setting is performed. Specifically, after the stop position is detected by a proximity switch (not shown), fine adjustment is performed by the number of pulses of the stepping motor 26. However, the rotation driving mechanism is not limited to the above configuration.

Here, the stage 12 is provided with a supply port 14 that communicates with the material supply unit 40 to supply the material, and an opening portion (in the present embodiment, the 1 st opening portion 52) of the syringe 50 held at the 2 nd position 20B described above is configured to communicate with the supply port 14 (details will be described later). Therefore, when the syringe 50 is attached to the turntable 20 at the 1 st position 20A and the syringe 50 is positioned at the 2 nd position 20B by rotating the turntable 20, the material is supplied from the material supply unit 40 and is discharged from the supply port 14, whereby the syringe 50 can be filled with the material. In the present embodiment, a position sensor 11 is disposed at a position directly above the turntable 20, and the position sensor 11 detects the position of the upper surface of the material in the syringe 50 attached to the turntable 20. This enables detection of the filled state in the syringe 50. As an example, the position sensor 11 is a laser distance measuring sensor that measures a distance using a laser beam, but is not limited thereto.

According to the above configuration, it is not necessary to perform a series of steps by batch processing as in the filling apparatus exemplified in patent document 1, and the steps can be performed by continuous processing. Therefore, the work of filling the syringe 50 with the material can be performed with improved productivity and with easy workability.

In the present embodiment, the "predetermined position" described above is additionally set as the next position. Specifically, the 3 rd position 20C is a position in which the inside of the syringe 50 is vacuumed. The 3 rd position 20C is set between the 1 st position 20A on the upstream side and the 2 nd position 20B on the downstream side in the rotational direction of the rotary table 20. However, the step of setting the 3 rd position 20C to make the inside of the syringe 50 vacuum is not essential, and the step may be omitted.

Here, the stage 12 is provided with a suction port 16 communicating with a vacuum generating section (not shown), and an opening (in the present embodiment, the 1 st opening 52) of the syringe 50 held at the 3 rd position 20C is configured to communicate with the suction port 16. Therefore, when the turntable 20 to which the syringe 50 is attached is rotated at the 1 st position 20A and the syringe 50 is positioned at the 3 rd position 20C upstream of the 2 nd position 20B, the inside of the syringe 50 can be brought into a vacuum state by the vacuum generating section. In the present application, "vacuum" is not a complete vacuum, but refers to a reduced pressure of about 50 to 100[ Pa ] as an example.

According to the above configuration, the mechanism for making the inside of the syringe 50 vacuum can be realized without providing a vacuum chamber as in the filling device exemplified in patent document 1. Therefore, simplification and cost reduction of the apparatus can be achieved, and workability can be improved. Further, since the material can be filled in the syringe 50 in a vacuum state, gas (usually air) can be prevented from entering (mixing) into the material, and the quality of the product can be improved.

In the present embodiment, the "predetermined positions" at which the turntable 20 is positioned are provided at four locations at intervals of 90 °. That is, the 3 rd position 20C is set at a position 90 DEG to the 1 st position 20A, the 2 nd position 20B is set at a position 180 DEG to the 1 st position 20A, and the 4 th position 20D is set at a position 270 DEG to the 1 st position 20A. Here, the 4 th position 20D is set as a standby position before the syringe 50 filled with the material moves to the 1 st position 20A, but may be set as a position where the syringe 50 is detached as a modification.

In another embodiment, the 4 th position 20D may be omitted, and three "predetermined positions" for positioning the turntable 20 may be provided at intervals of 120 °. In this case, an example is considered in which the 3 rd position 20C is set at a position of 120 ° relative to the 1 st position 20A, and the 2 nd position 20B is set at a position of 240 ° relative to the 1 st position 20A.

Further, since the step of making the inside of the syringe 50 vacuum is not essential as described above, as another embodiment, the 3 rd position 20C and the 4 th position 20D may be omitted, and two "predetermined positions" for positioning the turntable 20 may be provided at an interval of 180[ ° C. In this case, an example is considered in which the 2 nd position 20B is set at a position 180 ° with respect to the 1 st position 20A.

Next, in the filling device 1 of the present embodiment, the syringe 50 is detachably fixed to the rotary table 20 via the adapter 60. Fig. 8 shows a perspective view (schematic view) of the adapter 60, and fig. 9 shows a cross-sectional view taken along line IX-IX. The adapter 60 is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape and has a flange portion 66 (two pieces disposed at an angle of 180[ ° ] as an example) on the outer periphery, and a locking portion 62 is provided at the bottom in the cylinder, the locking portion 62 being capable of being screwed to a screw portion 52a provided in the 1 st opening 52 of the syringe 50 and having a flow path at the center, and the syringe 50 and the adapter 60 are connected by this screw connection. Further, a flow port 64 communicating with the 1 st opening 52 of the syringe 50 in the coupled state is provided on the lower surface (the surface on the side facing the turntable 20).

In contrast, the rotary table 20 has an insertion hole 22 into which the adapter 60 is detachably inserted, and the adapter 60 in a state in which the syringe 50 is connected is inserted into the insertion hole 22. Thereby, the syringe 50 can be fixed (held) to the turntable 20 via the adapter 60.

According to the above configuration, when the syringe 50 is positioned at the 3 rd position 20C, the 1 st opening 52 of the syringe 50 and the vacuum generating portion are communicated with each other through the communication port 64 of the adapter 60, and the inside of the syringe 50 can be brought into a vacuum state. When the syringe 50 is positioned at the 2 nd position 20B, the 1 st opening 52 of the syringe 50 is communicated with the material supply portion 40 via the communication port 64 of the adapter 60, and the syringe 50 can be filled with the material.

In this way, according to the configuration in which the syringe 50 is held on the turntable 20 by the adapter 60, a series of filling steps can be performed on a plurality of (here, four) syringes 50 held on the turntable 20 by the "continuous process", and the operation of connecting and disconnecting the syringes 50 and the adapter 60 can be performed at another place outside the apparatus. Therefore, the syringe 50 can be easily (one-touch) attached to and detached from the turntable 20 in a short time, and workability can be significantly improved. In addition, since the syringe 50 having various shapes can be handled by preparing the corresponding adapter 60, there is no need to modify the device itself, and the device cost can be reduced.

As a modification of the adapter 60, a one-way valve (not shown) for holding the syringe 50 in a vacuum state may be further provided. That is, the syringe 50 is configured to have a check valve that, in a state of being connected to the syringe 50, allows gas (air in this case) to flow from inside the syringe 50 to outside the syringe 50 and restricts the gas (air in this case) from flowing from outside the syringe 50 to inside the syringe 50. Thus, in the case where the filling device 1 is configured to make the inside of the syringe 50 into a vacuum state at the 3 rd position 20C as described above, the vacuum state is easily maintained while the syringe 50 moves from the 3 rd position 20C to the 2 nd position 20B. That is, even during the rotational movement of the turntable 20, the vacuum state in the syringe 50 held therein can be maintained. In this way, even in a configuration in which a series of filling steps are performed by "continuous processing", a mechanism for making the inside of the syringe 50 vacuum can be realized.

However, in the case where the adapter 60 has the above-described configuration of the check valve, when the syringe 50 is filled with the material at the 2 nd position 20B downstream of the 3 rd position 20C, it is necessary to prevent the filling of the material from being restricted by the action of the check valve, and therefore, for example, a configuration such as a mechanism (not shown) for canceling or avoiding (bypassing) the action of the check valve needs to be provided in parallel to secure the filling flow path.

As shown in fig. 5 and 6, the filling device 1 of the present embodiment is provided with a sealing member (here, an O-ring made of rubber or elastomer) 18 for sealing by pressure contact with the bottom surface of the adapter 60 (the opening peripheral edge of the flow port 64) at the suction port 16. The supply port 14 is provided with a sealing member (here, an O-ring made of rubber or elastomer) 19 for sealing by pressure-contacting the bottom surface of the adapter 60 (the opening peripheral edge of the flow port 64). Therefore, a leak-free flow path structure can be formed between the flow port 64 of the adapter 60 and the suction port 16 and between the flow port 64 of the adapter 60 and the supply port 14.

On the other hand, when the rotary table 20 is rotated while the adapter 60 holding the syringe 50 is fitted in the fitting hole 22, the boundary portion between the bottom surface and the side surface of the adapter 60 is in contact with the

seal members

18 and 19 in the horizontal direction and is further pushed. As a result, there is a possibility that the

seal members

18 and 19 are easily broken.

To solve this problem, a vertical movement mechanism that vertically moves the turntable 20 in the axial direction is further provided to bring the turntable 20 close to the stage 12 when the syringe 50 is positioned at a "predetermined position" (in the present embodiment, the 1 st position 20A to the 4 th position 20D) and stopped, and to bring the turntable 20 away from the stage 12 when the syringe 50 rotationally moves away from the "predetermined position".

Specifically, as an example of the vertical movement mechanism, an annular cam surface 30 is provided on the upper surface of the rotary table 20, and cams 32 are provided so as to protrude upward at predetermined positions (in the present embodiment, four positions corresponding to the "predetermined positions" for positioning (the 1 st position 20A to the 4 th position 20D)) of the cam surface 30. Further, a cam follower 34 is provided, and the cam follower 34 is supported by the housing 10 and includes a roller that rolls on the cam surface 30. Further, a biasing member 36 is provided to bias the turntable 20 upward. The urging member 36 also serves as a mechanism for generating a clamping force for causing the flange portion 66 of the adapter 60 to enter and clamp between the lower surface of the upper top plate 24 of the turntable 20 and the clamp ring (spring presser) 38. As an example, the biasing member 36 is configured by using a coil spring, but is not limited thereto, and may be configured by another structure such as a plate spring or an air spring.

According to this configuration, the cam follower 34 contacts the cam surface 30 at a position other than the position where the cam 32 is disposed, and the rotary table 20 is raised to a position restricted by a stopper (not shown) by the biasing force of the biasing member 36. On the other hand, at the cam 32 arrangement position, the cam follower 34 contacts the cam 32, the cam 32 is pressed down, and the turntable 20 is lowered against the urging force of the urging member 36. Therefore, the rotary table 20 can be set in a state in which the bottom surface of the adaptor 60 (the opening peripheral edge portion of the flow port 64) is pressed against the sealing

members

18 and 19 at a predetermined position (the above-mentioned "predetermined position" at which positioning is performed), and in a state in which the bottom surface of the adaptor 60 (the opening peripheral edge portion of the flow port 64) is separated from the sealing

members

18 and 19 at another position (a position in the middle of rotational movement). As a result, the above problem that the sealing

members

18 and 19 are easily broken can be solved.

In this way, according to the configuration including the vertical movement mechanism, the vacuum generation in the syringe 50 and the filling of the material into the syringe 50 can be realized by the above-described "continuous processing", and the above-described problem, that is, the problem of the sealing

members

18 and 19 of the supply port 14 and the suction port 16 being damaged by the rotation of the rotary table 20 can be solved.

Next, the material supplying unit 40 of the present embodiment will be described. As shown in fig. 1 to 6, the material supply unit 40 includes: a storage part 42 for storing a material to be filled into the syringe 50; a piping part 44 for circulating a material; and a pressurizing unit 46 for applying pressure to feed the material from the storage unit 42 to the piping unit 44. The piping portion 44 is configured to communicate with the supply port 14 of the stage 12.

Here, the storage section 42 is configured such that all or a part constituting the main region is arranged at a position (side position) not overlapping with the turntable 20 in a plan view. As a result, the overall height is lower than a configuration in which the reservoir 42 is disposed immediately below the turntable 20, and a compact filling device can be realized.

Alternatively, in a modified example, if the reservoir is installed on the ground or the like with a large capacity (not shown), the replacement cycle of the reservoir 42 can be further extended when the filling process is continuously performed, and the production efficiency can be improved.

On the other hand, the pressurizing unit 46 is configured to apply pressure by a structure (not shown) in which the pressing plate 46a is pressed downward against the upper surface (liquid surface) of the material in the storage unit 42. As an example, a known linear motion mechanism including a stepping motor is used, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

Next, a process of filling the syringe 50 with the paste-like material stored in the storage portion 42 using the filling device 1 having the above-described configuration will be described.

First, a plurality of empty syringes 50 are prepared and connected to the adapter 60 (step 1).

Next, the adaptor 60 to which the 1 st syringe 50 is connected is fitted into the fitting hole 22 of the turntable 20 at a predetermined position (1 st position 20A) (step 2). As an example of the fitting method, the flange portion 66 of the adapter 60 is pushed downward in accordance with the wide portion 22a of the corresponding fitting hole 22, and the clamp ring 38 is pressed down, and the adapter 60 is rotated by 90 ° at this position, whereby the flange portion 66 is clamped between the lower surface of the upper top plate 24 and the clamp ring 38. This enables the syringe 50 to be reliably fitted (fixed) to the turntable 20.

Subsequently, the turntable 20 is rotated by a predetermined angle (90 ° (degree) here). Thereby, the 1 st syringe 50 reaches the 3 rd position 20C. At this time, the inside of the 1 st syringe 50 is brought into a vacuum state (a reduced pressure state of about 50 to 100[ Pa ] in this case) by the vacuum generator (step 3). In addition, step 2 is performed simultaneously with the 2 nd syringe 50.

Subsequently, the turntable 20 is rotated by a predetermined angle (90 ° (degree) here). Thereby, the 1 st syringe 50 reaches the 2 nd position 20B. At this time, the material supply unit 40 fills the 1 st syringe 50 with the material (step 4). In addition, step 3 was performed on the 2 nd syringe 50, and step 2 was performed on the 3 rd syringe 50 at the same time.

Subsequently, the turntable 20 is rotated by a predetermined angle (90 ° (degree) here). Thereby, the 1 st syringe 50 reaches the 4 th position 20D. At this time, the 1 st syringe 50 is in a standby state before being detached (step 5). In addition, step 4 was performed on the 2 nd syringe 50, step 3 was performed on the 3 rd syringe 50, and step 2 was performed on the 4 th syringe 50 at the same time.

Subsequently, the turntable 20 is rotated by a predetermined angle (90 ° (degree) here). Thereby, the 1 st syringe 50 reaches the initial 1 st position 20A. At this time, the adapter 60 to which the 1 st syringe 50 filled with the material is connected is detached from the turntable 20 (the fitting hole 22) (step 6). In addition, step 5 was performed on the 2 nd syringe 50, step 4 was performed on the 3 rd syringe 50, step 3 was performed on the 4 th syringe 50, and step 2 was performed on the 5 th syringe 50 at the same time.

After that, by repeating the above-described steps, the material can be filled into the syringe 50 by continuous processing.

As described above, as a modification, the step of setting the standby state in step 5 may be changed to a step of removing the syringe 50. As another modification, one or both of the step of bringing the vacuum state in step 3 and the step of bringing the standby state in step 5 may be omitted.

(second embodiment)

Next, a filling device 1 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The basic configuration of the filling device 1 of the present embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, but differs particularly in the configuration of the material supply unit 40 and the like. Hereinafter, the present embodiment will be described focusing on this difference. Fig. 10 is a perspective view (schematic view) showing a configuration example of the filling device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view (schematic view) taken along line XI-XI in fig. 10. Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view (shown by a cross-section at a line XII-XII in fig. 11) showing a configuration example of the periphery of the turntable 20 of the filling device 1.

In the filling device 1 of the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 11 and 12, the reservoir 42 of the material supply unit 40 is configured to be detachably disposed at a position directly below the turntable 20. Thus, the piping portion 44 and the pressurizing portion 46 for feeding the material from the storage portion 42 to the syringe 50 can be simplified in structure and improved in maintainability as described below.

Specifically, the piping portion 44 is formed using a straight pipe 44A made of metal (or resin) from the storage portion 42 to the supply port 14 of the stage 12 (see fig. 13). In this way, since the structure is linear and short, maintenance such as cleaning after use can be performed extremely easily. Further, key-shaped

portions

44A and 44b extending in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction are provided at both ends of the straight tube 44A. This also enables the straight tube 44A (or the engagement object) to be easily engaged by simply rotating in the circumferential direction.

The pressurizing unit 46 is provided with a moving mechanism 48 for moving the reservoir 42 up and down. The moving mechanism 48 is configured to raise the reservoir 42, and the pressing plate 46a disposed at a position directly below the rotary table 20 presses the upper surface (liquid surface) of the material in the reservoir 42, thereby applying a pressure for feeding the material to the piping unit 44. As an example, a known linear motion mechanism including a stepping motor 48a is used for the movement mechanism 48, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

Further, since the storage unit 42 is disposed at a position directly below the turntable 20, the position sensor 11 described above can also be used as a position sensor for detecting the position of the upper surface of the material in the storage unit 42. In the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 14 (fig. 14A is a plan view, and fig. 14B is a front view), the detection placement portion 28 for placing (i.e., positioning and placing) the storage portion 42 is provided at an upper portion of the stage 12. Thus, the storage unit 42 in which the material is stored can be set in the detection placement unit 28, and the position of the upper surface of the material stored in the storage unit 42 can be detected by the position sensor 11 (which can be converted into the storage amount). In this way, a configuration can be realized in which a plurality of sensors are originally required to be used in combination with one sensor, and therefore, the device structure can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

The filling device 1 of the present embodiment further includes a gas discharge mechanism 70 for discharging gas (normally, air) remaining in the space above the storage portion 42 and the pipe portion 44 in a state where a predetermined amount of material is stored in the storage portion 42 and is arranged at a predetermined position. As shown in fig. 15, the exhaust mechanism 70 includes an exhaust adapter 72, and the exhaust adapter 72 is detachably attached to the turntable 20 and has a flow path 72a provided therein. The exhaust adapter 72 is provided with an inlet 72b communicating with the flow path 72a at a lower portion thereof, and an outlet 72c communicating with the flow path 72a at an upper portion thereof, and is configured such that a tubular member 74 such as a hose or a pipe can be attached to the outlet 72c via a pipe joint 76. On the other hand, the turntable 20 is provided with a 2 nd fitting hole into which the air supply/discharge adapter 72 is detachably fitted (the 2 nd fitting hole is also configured to serve as the fitting hole 22 for the adapter 60). According to this configuration, the gas remaining in the reservoir 42 and the pipe 44 can be discharged before the syringe 50 is filled with the material. Therefore, the gas can be prevented from entering (mixing into) the material filled in the syringe 50, and the quality of the product can be improved.

As a specific example of the process, first, the exhaust adapter 72 is fitted into the fitting hole 22 of the turntable 20, and the turntable 20 is positioned so that the exhaust adapter 72 is disposed at the 2 nd position 20B (described above). Next, the storage unit 42 is raised by the moving mechanism 48, and the upper surface (liquid surface) of the material in the storage unit 42 is pressed by the pressing plate 46 a. This pressing operation is continued until the material is fed from the discharge port 72c of the exhaust adapter 72 (in this case, the tubular member 74 attached to the discharge port 72 c). When this state is achieved, the discharge of the gas remaining in the reservoir 42 and the pipe 44 is completed. Next, the exhaust adapter 72 is removed, and instead, the adapter 60 to which the syringe 50 is fixed is fitted into each fitting hole 22, and the filling process (described above) into the syringe 50 is started.

The exhaust mechanism 70 is applicable not only to the second embodiment but also to the first embodiment described above in the same manner.

As described above, according to the filling device of the present invention, a filling device having a simple structure without a vacuum chamber can be realized. In addition, when filling the syringe with the material, the step of batch processing can be eliminated, and the process can be performed by the step of continuous processing, so that the production efficiency can be improved.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. In particular, the following structures are exemplified: while a series of steps are performed by holding four syringes in the turntable via the adapter and setting the positioning (stop position) of the rotatably driven turntable at four positions, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be similarly applied to a device in which the number of syringes other than the above and the corresponding positioning setting of the turntable are performed.

Claims

1. A filling device for filling a syringe with a paste-like material from a 1 st opening provided in the syringe,

the filling device is provided with:

an object stage;

a rotary table rotatably provided on the stage, holding the syringe detachably and positioning the syringe at a predetermined position by a rotational movement; and

a material supply section that supplies the material,

the stage has a supply port communicating with the material supply portion,

the predetermined position is set to a 1 st position at which the syringe is attached to the turntable and a 2 nd position at which the 1 st opening of the syringe communicates with the supply port.

2. Filling device according to claim 1,

the filling device is also provided with a vacuum generating part for generating vacuum,

the stage has a suction port communicating with the vacuum generating portion,

the predetermined position is a 3 rd position where the 1 st opening of the syringe communicates with the suction port, and is set between the 1 st position and the 2 nd position.

3. Filling device according to claim 1 or 2,

the filling device further includes a vertical movement mechanism that vertically moves the turntable in an axial direction so as to bring the turntable close to the stage when the syringe is positioned at the predetermined position and stopped, and to bring the turntable away from the stage when the syringe is moved rotationally away from the predetermined position.

4. Filling device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,

the filling device further comprises an adapter which is screwed with a screw portion provided in the 1 st opening of the syringe to connect the syringe,

the adapter has a communication port on a lower surface thereof, the communication port communicating with the 1 st opening of the syringe in a connected state,

the rotary table has an insertion hole into which the adapter is detachably inserted, and the adapter connected to the syringe is inserted into the insertion hole, whereby the syringe is held by the adapter.

5. Filling device according to claim 4,

the adapter has a check valve that restricts the flow of gas from the flow port toward the 1 st opening of the syringe.

6. Filling device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,

the material supply unit includes: a storage portion for storing the material; a piping section for circulating the material; and a pressurizing part for applying pressure to send the material from the storage part to the piping part,

the storage unit is disposed at a lateral position of the turntable.

7. Filling device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,

the storage unit is detachably disposed at a position right below the turntable.

8. Filling device according to claim 7,

the pressing unit includes a moving mechanism that moves the stock unit up and down, and is configured to move the stock unit up by the moving mechanism, and to apply the pressure by pressing an upper surface of the material in the stock unit with a pressing plate disposed at a position directly below the rotary table.

9. Filling device according to claim 7 or 8,

the pipe portion is formed using a straight pipe having, at each of both end portions thereof, a key-shaped portion extending in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction.

10. Filling device according to any one of claims 7 to 9,

the filling device further comprises a position sensor disposed at a position directly above the turntable and detecting a position of an upper surface of the material in the syringe attached to the turntable,

the position sensor is configured to also serve as a position sensor for detecting a position of an upper surface of the material in the storage portion,

a detection placement unit is provided on an upper portion of the stage, and the storage unit is placed by the detection placement unit when the position sensor detects the position of the upper surface of the material in the storage unit.

11. Filling device according to any one of claims 1 to 10,

the filling device further includes an exhaust mechanism for exhausting gas remaining in the upper space and the pipe portion in a state where the predetermined amount of the material is accommodated in the storage portion,

the exhaust mechanism has an exhaust adapter which is detachable from the turntable and has a flow path inside,

the exhaust adapter has an inlet port communicating with the flow path at a lower portion thereof and an outlet port communicating with the flow path at an upper portion thereof,

the rotating table is provided with a 2 nd embedding hole, the 2 nd embedding hole is used for the exhaust adapter to be detachably embedded,

in the filling device, the introduction port of the exhaust adapter and the supply port of the stage are configured to communicate with each other in a state where the exhaust adapter is fitted in the 2 nd fitting hole and disposed at the 2 nd position.