Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
  • B65B55/00—Preserving, protecting or purifying packages or package contents in association with packaging
  • B65B55/02—Sterilising, e.g. of complete packages
  • B65B55/04—Sterilising wrappers or receptacles prior to, or during, packaging
  • B65B55/10—Sterilising wrappers or receptacles prior to, or during, packaging by liquids or gases
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
  • B65B3/00—Packaging plastic material, semiliquids, liquids or mixed solids and liquids, in individual containers or receptacles, e.g. bags, sacks, boxes, cartons, cans, or jars
  • B65B3/04—Methods of, or means for, filling the material into the containers or receptacles
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
  • B65B55/00—Preserving, protecting or purifying packages or package contents in association with packaging
  • B65B55/02—Sterilising, e.g. of complete packages
  • B65B55/025—Packaging in aseptic tunnels
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
  • B65B55/00—Preserving, protecting or purifying packages or package contents in association with packaging
  • B65B55/24—Cleaning of, or removing dust from, containers, wrappers, or packaging ; Preventing of fouling

Definitions

• the invention relates to a device and a method for sterilizing in the filling preferably liquid food in packing containers with a
• Preheating zone a sterilization zone, a drying zone, a filling zone and a closure zone, which form a sterile room and are arranged immediately adjacent to each other and are closed at the top by a hood which receives the necessary supply elements and lines.
• the actual sterilization takes place according to known methods in which the surfaces to be sterilized of the still open packages, preferably cardboard / plastic composite packages, a predetermined period of time must come into contact with a disinfectant, which then, ie before the actual filling process, again from the
• Packages are transported from the preheating zone into the downstream sterilization zone, where the wetting with the disinfecting agent, preferably H2O2, takes place.
• the liquid H2O2 is atomised by means of hot compressed air or superheated steam to a H202 aerosol, so that no larger and heavier droplets themselves can precipitate on the packaging surface, which could not be easily removed during the subsequent rinsing process.
• drying zone so-called drying zone.
• the packs are included in this zone
• This object is achieved in that under the hood substantially horizontally extending and a plurality of openings having air guide elements are provided and that this is supplied from above through the hood sterile air, so that below the air guide evenly downwardly running laminar flow [" In this way, it is ensured that dust or germs, which could reach the interior of the device via the transport chains, have no opportunity there to rise up against the laminar flow, thus remaining or becoming at the bottom of the device from there further down out of the device transported.
• the air guiding elements are arranged at least in the region of the drying zone, filling zone and sealing zone.
• the air guide elements can be designed differently in zones.
• an adaptation to the already predetermined size of the respective zone can take place on the one hand, and on the other hand, however, a concrete orientation of the laminar flow can also be effected as a function of the zone and the lines located therein.
• a further embodiment of the invention are at the zone boundaries from the hood down to the respective air guide vertically
• partition walls which isolate the individual zones in the upper region of the sterile room from each other and thus exclude a horizontal exchange of air, whereby the formation of a uniform downward laminar flow is further improved. In this way, a sterile air chamber can be formed for each individual zone.
• each pre-distributor element spanning the entire width of the device is arranged in each sterile air chamber, to which the sterile air is supplied via supply tubes extending vertically through the hood.
• each pre-distributor element at least at its horizontal bottom having a plurality of openings to pass the supplied air down into the respective sterile air chamber.
• the pre-distributor element can for example consist of a U-shaped metal sheet.
• a non-apertured structure acting as a baffle zone such as a baffle plate, is provided.
• a baffle zone ensures that the sterile air supplied to the pre-distribution chamber with a slight overpressure initially spreads horizontally within the pre-distributor and then uniformly over the entire width of the
• Air guide elements and / or the pre-distributor elements on and / or output side are chamfered to minimize turbulence in the sterile air when passing through these openings or to avoid as completely as possible. According to another teaching of the invention, all openings in the
• Air guide elements and / or pre-distributor elements are designed as perforated plates. However, it is also possible to use honeycomb sheets or the like.
• the air-guiding elements or pre-distributor elements are preferably made of stainless steel.
• Pre-distribution elements are designed as grid structures or the like.
• the air guide elements and / or pre-distributor elements are releasably secured by means of brackets or clips on the hood.
• the air guide elements and / or pre-distributor elements can be provided with eyelets or hooks, which correspond with the retaining clips or clips.
• the invention further relates to a method for sterilizing the filling of preferably liquid foods in packing containers, comprising the following steps:
• Preheating zone a sterilization zone, a drying zone, a filling zone and a closure zone, which form a sterile space and are arranged immediately adjacent to each other and are closed at the top by a hood, the necessary supply elements and
• the object underlying the invention is achieved in that the at least one formed from a moldable blank or packing jacket open-top packing is transported discontinuously or continuously through the preheating zone, the sterilization zone, the drying zone, the filling zone and the Verschbiszone and thereby is continuously applied with a uniform downward laminar flow of sterile air.
• an apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 18 is provided for the method in step a).
• the laminar sterile air flow at least in sections an overpressure of 0.12 bar to 0.55 bar, preferably from 0.18 bar to 0.32 bar, on.
• the above-mentioned overpressure is measured within the sterile chamber, for example with the aid of a Prandtl's pitot tube.
• the at least one packing has a transport speed of 0.8 m / s to 3.0 m / s, preferably 1.2 m / s to 1.8 m / s the zones is transported.
• FIG. 1 shows a hood of a device according to the invention in side view
• FIG. 4B shows the article from FIG. 4A in perspective view
• FIG. 1 is a hood 1 of the device according to the invention for sterilization in the filling preferably liquid food in packing container in Side view shown.
• the individual zones to be filled of packages P to be filled namely preheating zone A, sterilizing zone B, drying zone C, filling zone D and closing zone E are shown.
• the sterile space formed by individual zones A, B, C, D, E is from a
• the sterile room is delimited by the hood 1, of which only a peripheral frame 2 and a cover 3 can be seen. As already known from the generic state of the art, all supply elements are contained within the hood 1.
• the 'sterile room' is not structurally limited downwards, its lower one
• the sterile air nozzles 4 are supplied with sterile air via hoses (not shown).
• the supply elements comprise - in Fig. 1 from left to right - a manifold 5 for hot sterile air, a H202 distributor 6, a sterile air distributor 7, two
• Filling 8 with arranged below filling nozzles 9 and a
• Preheat ports 13 are in communication with respective preheat nozzles 14 through which the open top packs P are purged with hot air or superheated steam to heat them to reliably prevent condensation of sterilant liquid inside the pack P.
• H202 distributors 6 are each arranged with H202 aerosol distributors 15, from which H202 aerosol nozzles 16 pass through the hood 1 into the interior of the sterile room, as shown in FIG.
• the H 2 O 2 aerosol nozzles 16 reach down to just above the packs P.
• the H 2 O 2 aerosol nozzles 16 terminate in a tunnel plate 17 to prevent unnecessary spreading of the H 2 O 2 aerosol nozzles 16
• a plurality of air guide elements for producing a downwardly oriented laminar sterile air flow are now arranged below the hood 1.
• a first air guide 18, which has an L-shaped cross-section and together with the bottom of the hood 1 a sterile chamber 19 is formed.
• the sterile chamber 19 is separated to the right by a partition wall 21 of the subsequent filling zone D.
• the filling zone D is also equipped with an air guiding element 22, which forms a sterile chamber 23 together with the dividing wall 21 and the underside of the hood 1. In it is in the top right in cross section
• Pre-distribution element 24 to recognize, which will be described in more detail.
• the sterile chamber 23 is bounded by the partition 25.
• the closure zone E also has an air guide element 26 and a pre-distributor element 27.
• the exact arrangement and function of the air guide elements 18, 22, 26 and pre-distributor elements 20, 24, 27 will be described below with reference to the other figures.
• Fig. 2 shows first a vertical section through the device according to the invention along the line III-III in the preheating A in the transport direction of the packages P.
• hood according to the invention of the in Figs. 1 and 2 only the outer frame 2 was visible, down through a
• Sterilluftstutzen 4 can be seen (in a sectional view) the already mentioned sterile air distributor 5, from which a plurality of supply lines go out to lead the hot sterile air to the consumers.
• the section in Fig. 3 passes exactly through the two provided on this side of the hood 1 ports 13, of which lead the three preheating 14 to immediately above the open-topped packs P to heat them with superheated steam or with hot air. 3 also shows three tunnel plates 17, which extend above the lines L4 to L6 shown in the region of the subsequent degermination zone D above the clear opening of the packs P in order to minimize unnecessary spreading of the H2O2 in the interior of the sterile room. Finally, one recognizes in Fig. 3 nor the vertically upwardly bent wall of the air guide 18, which represents the boundary to the drying zone C.
• Fig. 4A shows a vertical section through the drying zone C along the line IV-IV in Fig. 1.
• the horizontal floor can be seen.
• This is with a variety of unspecified holes provided and preferably formed as a perforated plate, which represents the lower boundary of the sterile chamber 19.
• the pre-distributor 20 can be seen, which is designed as a U-shaped profile sheet and is also provided with a plurality of rows of holes. In this, however, no holes are present immediately below the sterile air nozzle 4 to there, as already described, corresponding impact zones PZ
• Air guide element 22 supplied sterile air fills the entire sterile chamber 23 and leads through the evenly-perforated bottom of the air guide 22 to form a "sterile air curtain" underneath, which is to prevent germs approaching from below the openings of the packs P or internals inside the sterile room
• cover panels 28 extending in the transport direction of the packs P are visible, which are fastened with hooks 29 to the partition wall 25 extending vertically behind it.
• sterile air nozzle 4 for the supply of sterile air, first in the pre-distributor 27 and from there - evened on the entire width of the device - in the arranged below the air guide element 26th Again, the air guide 26 ensures that the hot sterile air is evenly directed downwards and leads to a laminar flow.
• the Closing devices themselves are not shown, you can see here already closed packages P '.
• Fig. 7 finally shows that the parallel to the transport direction of the packs P extending walls of the device whose housing is shown here schematically as a rectangle 30, as, preferably transparent, discs 31 are formed and that in each disc 31 and / or on the housing 30 of the device, a circumferential groove 32 is present, which communicates with at least one pre-distributor 20 in connection. In this way, it is reliably achieved that no germs in any leaks between the housing 30 and disc 31 can penetrate through the pressure prevailing in the annular groove 32 overpressure.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Food Preservation Except Freezing, Refrigeration, And Drying (AREA)
• Basic Packing Technique (AREA)
• Apparatus For Disinfection Or Sterilisation (AREA)
• Containers And Plastic Fillers For Packaging (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=57482441

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Families Citing this family (7)

Family Cites Families (15)

• 2015
  • 2015-12-28 DE DE102015122876.9A patent/DE102015122876A1/de not_active Withdrawn
• 2016
  • 2016-12-05 WO PCT/EP2016/079772 patent/WO2017114640A1/de active Application Filing
  • 2016-12-05 JP JP2018552119A patent/JP2019501086A/ja not_active Withdrawn
  • 2016-12-05 CN CN201680077012.1A patent/CN108473220A/zh active Pending
  • 2016-12-05 US US16/066,459 patent/US20190016493A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2016-12-05 EP EP16805844.4A patent/EP3397561A1/de not_active Withdrawn

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