JP2000190924A - Container cleaning method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the cleaning performance by using a cleaning solution whose temperature is not lower than a specified value in a container cleaning method in which a container lid is fitted to a neck part of a container body, the cleaning solution is injected, and advanced between an outer circumferential surface of the neck part of the container body and the inner circumferential surface of a skirt wall of the container lid. SOLUTION: When a container in which a container lid 2 is fitted to a neck part of a container body filled with a content is transferred to a cleaning and cooling device by a belt conveyor, etc., a cleaning solution to be injected downward from an injection hole of a cleaning solution injection tank is poured on the container lid 2 of the container. By using the cleaning solution heated to at least 65 deg.C, the cleaning solution sufficiently passes through a cleaning solution passing means 44 even when the cleaning solution passing means 44 is formed of a sufficiently small notch formed in the container lid 2, and is advanced between an outer circumferential surface of the neck part of the container body and an inner circumferential surface of a skirt wall 6 of the container lid 2. The cleaning solution flows down the space therebetween, and cleans the outer circumferential surface of the neck part 48 and the inner circumferential surface of the skirt wall 6.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the present invention, a container body is filled with contents, and then a container lid having a top wall and a tubular skirt wall hanging down from the periphery of the top wall is attached to the mouth and neck of the container body. Thereafter, the cleaning liquid is sprayed onto the container lid to penetrate the cleaning liquid permeating means formed on the container lid, and to enter between the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container body and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall of the container lid. It relates to a container cleaning method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known to those skilled in the art, when filling contents such as beverages into a container body, some contents tend to scatter and adhere to the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container body. There is. If the contents scattered and attached to the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck are left as it is, it will corrode and create a hygiene problem, or solidify between the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall of the container lid The opening torque required for opening the container (torque required for rotating the container lid) is excessively increased. Therefore, a cleaning liquid permeating means, which may be a through slit or a hole, is formed in the upper portion of the skirt wall of the container lid and / or the peripheral portion of the top wall,
After attaching the container lid to the mouth and neck of the container body and sealing the mouth and neck, a cleaning liquid, which may be clean water, is sprayed toward the container lid, and the washing liquid permeating means is allowed to permeate and the mouth and neck of the container body are removed. Let go between the outer peripheral surface and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall of the container lid,
Thus, it has been proposed to wash away the content that has scattered and adhered to the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck, and also the content that has transferred from the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck to the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall of the container lid.

[0003] The container body is generally formed of a suitable synthetic resin such as polyethylene terephthalate or glass. On the other hand, recently, as a container lid, a synthetic resin container lid formed of an appropriate synthetic resin such as polypropylene or polyethylene has been widely used in place of a thin metal plate container lid. In the case of a synthetic resin container lid, a plurality of through slits or holes are formed in the skirt wall and / or the top wall when the container lid is compressed or injection-molded, and such slits or holes function as a washing liquid permeating means. May be intended. However, usually, the slits or holes formed during compression or injection molding are necessarily relatively large in terms of die-cutting or the like, and therefore, dust accumulates on the slits or holes or the slits or holes are formed. There is a small possibility that dust will pass through to the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container, and the slit or the hole will be visually recognized clearly, thereby causing the problem of impairing the appearance of the container lid.

[0004] In view of the above-described problems of the conventional synthetic resin container lid, the present invention was applied to the application of
Patent Application No. 15184 (filed on January 28, 1998,
In the specification and drawings of the title of the invention: a synthetic resin container lid having cuts and a method of forming the cuts), after the container lid is compressed or injection-molded, a cutting blade is acted from the outer surface of the container lid to cut through. Thus, it has been proposed to form a plurality of cuts and make such cuts function as a washing liquid permeating means. Such cuts are sufficiently small and can be made visually inconspicuous, so that the above-mentioned problems of the conventional synthetic resin container lid can be solved.

[0005]

However, the cut formed by cutting through the outer surface of the container lid with the action of a cutting blade is as much as possible with respect to the above-mentioned problems relating to dust and appearance. It is desired to be small. However, if the cut is made small enough to solve the problem of dust and appearance, even if the cleaning liquid is sprayed toward the container lid for cleaning after the container lid is attached to the mouth and neck of the container body. In addition, the cleaning liquid does not sufficiently pass through the cleaning liquid permeating means constituted by the cuts, and there is a tendency that poor cleaning occurs due to this.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned facts, and its main technical problem is that even if the cuts are made small enough to solve the problem relating to dust and appearance, the cuts are constituted by the cuts. It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel and excellent container cleaning method in which the cleaning liquid sufficiently permeates through the cleaning liquid permeating means thus performed and sufficient cleaning is achieved.

[0007]

As a result of intensive studies and experiments, the present inventors have surprisingly discovered that (1) the use of
℃ or more and spray it.
The cleaning liquid heated to 45 ° C. or higher and then sprayed to a temperature of 45 to 70 ° C. is transmitted through the cuts constituting the cleaning liquid permeating means, so that the cleaning liquid is formed inside the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container and the skirt wall of the container lid. It was found that it was able to penetrate into the periphery and thus achieve the required cleaning. In order to promote the cleaning action, it is desirable that the temperature of the cleaning liquid and / or the heating temperature of the container lid be as high as possible.
Since the taste may be deteriorated if the contents are excessively heated, the temperature of the cleaning liquid and / or the temperature for heating the container lid should be set in consideration of such a fact.

[0008] (1) The cleaning liquid is heated and sprayed at a temperature of 65 ° C or higher, or (2) The container lid is heated to 70 ° C or higher and then the cleaning liquid heated to a temperature of 45 to 70 ° C is sprayed to thereby provide a cleaning liquid permeating means. The reason why the cleaning liquid is satisfactorily transmitted through the cleaning liquid permeating means is not necessarily clear, even if the notch constituting is sufficiently small, but the present inventors have found that the temperature of the container lid is increased. As a result, the container lid is slightly expanded, whereby the pressure in the space between the mouth and neck of the container body and the skirt wall of the container lid is reduced, and the cleaning liquid is sucked through the cleaning liquid permeating means due to the reduced pressure. It is also presumed that the higher the temperature of the cleaning liquid, the lower the surface tension of the cleaning liquid, and the easier it is to transmit through the cleaning liquid permeation means.

Therefore, according to one aspect of the present invention, the contents are filled in a container body having a mouth and a neck, and then, the container body has a mouth and a neck which hang down from the top wall and the periphery of the top wall. After attaching a container lid having a cylindrical skirt wall and at least one of an upper portion of the skirt wall and a peripheral portion of the top wall, a cleaning liquid is jetted to the container lid. Then, the cleaning liquid permeating means is permeated to enter between the mouth and neck of the container body and the skirt wall of the container lid, and thus the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container body and the container lid A container cleaning method for cleaning an inner peripheral surface of a skirt wall, wherein a cleaning liquid heated to 65 ° C. or higher is sprayed is provided.

[0010] The container body is filled with the contents at room temperature,
Before the cleaning liquid is sprayed, the container lid may be at room temperature.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a container body having a mouth-and-neck portion is filled with contents, and then, a top wall and a tube hanging down from the periphery of the top wall in the mouth-and-neck portion of the container body. A cleaning liquid permeating means is formed on at least one of the upper part of the skirt wall and the peripheral edge of the top wall, and then spraying the cleaning liquid on the container lid. The cleaning liquid permeation means is permeated to enter between the mouth and neck of the container body and the skirt wall of the container lid, and thus the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container body and the skirt of the container lid In the container cleaning method for cleaning the inner peripheral surface of the wall,
The container lid was heated to 70 ° C. or higher, and then 45 to 7
A container cleaning method is provided, in which a cleaning liquid heated to 0 ° C. is injected.

The container lid can be heated by injecting a heating fluid of 70 ° C. or higher into the container lid. Preferably, the heating fluid is injected for two minutes or more.

[0013] The cleaning liquid permeating means is advantageously constituted by a cut formed by applying a cutting blade from the outer surface to cut through.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the container cleaning method of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a container lid of a container used in a preferred embodiment of the container cleaning method of the present invention. The container lid indicated by the whole number 2 can be conveniently formed by compression molding or injection molding into a required shape from an appropriate synthetic resin such as polypropylene or hard polyethylene, and further processing as described later.
The container lid 2 includes a circular top wall 4 and a substantially cylindrical skirt wall 6 hanging from the periphery of the top wall 4. The skirt wall 6 has a circumferential breaking line 8 formed thereon. The skirt wall 6 has a main portion 10 above the circumferential breaking line 8 and a tamper-evident hem portion 12 below the circumferential breaking line 8. It is partitioned.

The circumferential breaking line 8 in the illustrated embodiment includes a plurality of bridging portions 14 arranged at circumferentially spaced intervals. In regions other than the plurality of bridge portions 14, the main portion 10 of the skirt wall 6 and the tamper-evident hem portion 12 are separated from each other by cutting. In other words, the tamper-evident foot 12 is connected to the main part 10 of the skirt wall 6 via the plurality of bridges 14. More specifically, as can be understood from FIG.
The inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall 6 is formed with a downwardly facing annular shoulder surface 15 located slightly above the circumferential breaking line 8. A plurality of ridges 16 extending downward from the annular shoulder surface 15 are formed at intervals in the circumferential direction. The circumferential breaking line 8 is formed by cutting the skirt wall 6 from its outer peripheral surface while leaving all or only a part of the ridge 16 (the cut is indicated by a solid line 18 in FIG. 1). You.

On the outer peripheral surface of the main portion 10 of the skirt wall 6, a frustoconical portion 20 whose outer diameter gradually increases downward is formed near the lower end thereof. The lower end of the main portion 10 of the skirt wall 6 (that is, the portion below the frustoconical portion 20) and the outer peripheral surface of the tamper-evident hem portion 12 following the skirt wall 6 also have a small but gradually decreasing outer diameter toward the bottom. It is shaped like an increasing truncated cone. In a portion above the truncated cone-shaped portion 20 on the outer peripheral surface of the main portion 10, an uneven shape 24 for preventing a finger hung thereon from slipping is formed. A female thread 26 is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the main part 10. The female thread 26 is formed with a notch 28 extending in the axial direction at intervals in the circumferential direction. On the inner peripheral surface of the main part 10, an annular ridge 30 is further formed on the upper end thereof. A sealing liner 32 formed separately from the main body of the container lid 2 is provided in a space defined by the annular ridge 30 and the inner surface of the top wall 4. The sealing liner 32 can be conveniently formed by supplying a softened and molten synthetic resin material to the inner surface of the top wall 4 and compressing the synthetic resin material with a pressing tool. The synthetic resin material for the sealing liner 32 is preferably a relatively soft synthetic resin such as soft polyethylene.

An upper portion of the inner peripheral surface of the tamper-evident hem portion 12 (slightly below the lower end of the ridge 16) is formed with an annular shoulder surface 34 facing downward. Below the annular shoulder surface 34, a plurality of flap pieces 36 are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the tamper-evident hem portion 12 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. Each of the flap pieces 36 extends from a base edge 38 connected to the inner peripheral surface of the tamper-evident hem 12 to the closing rotation direction of the container lid 2 when the container lid 2 is mounted on the mouth and neck of the container, ie, FIG. At 1, it is inclined in the opposite direction to the clockwise direction as viewed from above and is projected inward in the radial direction. Each base edge 38 itself of the flap piece 36 also extends downward in a direction opposite to the closing rotation direction of the container lid 2. At the lower end of the tamper-evident hem portion 12, a thin curl 40 extending in an arc shape inward in the radial direction is attached. In the compression molding or the injection molding, the thin curl 40 is formed to extend substantially vertically downward as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1), and can be conveniently formed by curling into the form shown by the solid line in FIG.

Continuing the description with reference to FIG. 1, the illustrated container lid 2 is formed on the upper part of the main part 10 of the skirt wall 6, more specifically on the inner peripheral surface of the main part 10 in the axial direction. A cleaning liquid permeating means 44 is formed between the annular ridge 30 and the female thread 26. In the illustrated embodiment, the cleaning liquid permeating means 44 comprises a plurality of (for example, eight) cuts extending in the circumferential direction at intervals in the circumferential direction. Such a cut is preferably formed by penetrating a required portion of the main portion 10 of the skirt wall 6 by applying a cutting blade from the outer surface thereof. For details of the manner of forming the cut by the cutting blade, see the above-mentioned 1998 Patent Application No. 15184.
Since these are described in the specification and drawings of the above-mentioned publications, the descriptions of such specifications and drawings are cited in this specification and the description is omitted in this specification. Instead of forming the cuts with a cutting blade, the cuts can be formed with other cutting means such as a laser beam. Further, instead of or in addition to forming a notch extending in the circumferential direction at the upper portion of the main portion 10 of the skirt wall 6, for example, FIGS. 13 and 14 of the above-mentioned 1998 patent application No. 15184.
As shown in FIG. 15, a notch extending in the axial direction from the peripheral edge of the top wall 4 to the upper part of the main part 10 of the skirt wall 6, or as shown in FIGS. It is also possible to form a notch extending in a peripheral shape of the face wall 4 in an arc shape.

FIG. 2 shows a state in which the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck portion 48 of the container body 46 as required.
The mouth and neck portion 48 of the container main body 46, which can be formed of a suitable synthetic resin such as polyethylene terephthalate or glass, has a cylindrical shape as a whole, and has an external thread 50 and a portion below the external thread 50 on its outer peripheral surface. Is formed. As shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2, similarly to the case of the female thread 26 of the container lid 2 described above, the notch 54 extending in the axial direction at intervals in the circumferential direction is also formed in the male thread 50. I have. After filling required contents such as fruit juice drinks and tea drinks into the container body 46, the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck portion 48. At this time, the container lid 2 is fitted on the mouth and neck portion 48, and the container lid 2 is rotated in the closing rotation direction, that is, clockwise as viewed from above in FIG. The container cover 2 is screwed into the male thread 50 of the mouth and neck 48, and the container lid 2 is lowered in accordance with the rotation. The flap piece 36 formed on the tamper-evident hem portion 12 of the container lid 2 is elastically deformed and passes through the locking jaw 52 of the mouth and neck portion 48, and then elastically recovers and engages. It is locked by the jaw part 52. The sealing liner 32 disposed on the inner surface of the top wall 4 of the container lid 2 is brought into close contact with the top surface of the mouth-neck portion 48, whereby the mouth-neck portion 48 is sealed.

In one aspect of the present invention, the container body 46
At room temperature, contents, for example, beverages such as various teas, various juices or various carbonated beverages, are filled. Then, the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck portion 48 of the container body 46, and the mouth and neck portion 48 is sealed. As is well known to those skilled in the art, when filling the container body 46 with the contents, there is a tendency for some contents to scatter and adhere to the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck portion 48. Therefore, after the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck portion 48 and the mouth and neck portion 48 is sealed, a washing step is performed.

FIG. 3 is a simplified view showing a cleaning / cooling apparatus for continuously performing a cleaning step and a cooling step subsequent thereto, and FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a part of the cleaning / cooling apparatus. It is. Continuing with FIGS. 3 and 4 in conjunction with FIGS. 1 and 2, the cleaning and cooling device, generally designated 56, includes an elongated housing 58. The upstream portion of the housing 58 constitutes a cleaning housing 60,
The downstream portion constitutes a cooling housing 62. The downstream end of the cleaning housing 60 is directly connected to the upstream end of the cooling housing 62. At the lower part of the housing 58, a transporting means 64 is provided which extends substantially horizontally and continuously through the cleaning housing 60 and the cooling housing 62. The transfer means 64 can be constituted by a normal belt conveyor. A cleaning liquid injection tank 66 is provided above the cleaning housing 60, and the cooling housing 6.
A cooling liquid injection tank 68 is provided on the upper part of 2.
The cleaning liquid injection tank 66 has a bottom plate 70 which may be rectangular,
The bottom plate 70 is provided with a large number of injection holes 72.
The diameter of the injection holes 72 is preferably about 1.5 to 3.5 mm, and the pitch of the injection holes is preferably about 15 to 25 mm. A cleaning liquid 74, which may be heated tap water (tap water), is supplied to a cleaning liquid injection tank 66 by a pump 76.
The cleaning liquid is sprayed downward from the spray holes 72 of the bottom plate 70. It is important that the temperature of the cleaning liquid is 65 ° C. or higher, preferably 68 to 70 ° C. Coolant injection tank 6
8 also has a bottom plate 78 which may be rectangular, and a number of injection holes 80 are also drilled in this bottom plate 78. The diameter and pitch of the injection holes 80 may be the same as those of the injection holes 72. Cooling water 82, which may be tap water having a temperature of about 30 ° C., is supplied to the cooling liquid injection tank by a pump 84, and the cooling water 82 is injected downward from the injection holes 80.

The container in which the contents are filled in the container main body 46 and the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck portion 48 of the container main body 46, as shown by an arrow in FIG. By the transporting means (not shown), a plurality of the cleaning and cooling devices 56 are successively carried into the upstream end of the transporting means 64 in the cleaning / cooling device 56 in a state of being arranged in parallel. Then, it is conveyed at a required speed through the cleaning housing 60 and the cooling housing 62 by the conveying means 64. While the container is being conveyed through the cleaning housing 60, the cleaning liquid 74 injected downward from the injection hole 72 of the cleaning liquid injection tank 66 is poured into the container lid 2 of the container. The cleaning liquid 74 penetrates the cleaning liquid permeating means 44 even when the cleaning liquid permeating means 44 formed on the container lid 2 is constituted by a sufficiently small cut, as will be clearly understood from the examples described later. Between the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck portion 48 of the container body 46 and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall 6 of the container lid 2, and flows down therethrough to form the inner peripheral surface of the mouth and neck portion 48 and the inside of the skirt wall 6. Clean the peripheral surface. The sprayed cleaning liquid 74 is supplied to the housing 58.
It is guided to a drainage channel (not shown) provided at the lower end of the housing 58 and drained from the housing 58. The container passes beneath the cleaning liquid jet tank 66 for a period of at least 10 minutes, preferably about 13 to 17 minutes. In other words, it is preferable that the cleaning liquid 74 is sprayed on the container lid 2 for 10 minutes or more, particularly for 13 to 17 minutes. If the cleaning liquid injection time is too short, a sufficient cleaning effect cannot be achieved. Conversely, if the cleaning liquid injection time is excessively long, the contents will be heated for a long time, and depending on the contents, the taste may be deteriorated.

While the container is being conveyed under the coolant jet tank 68, a coolant 82 is injected into the container, thereby cooling the container and its contents. 15 containers
It is preferable to pass under the coolant jet tank 68 in about a minute. The container discharged from the washing / cooling device 56 is transported to, for example, a packaging station, and is packed in the packaging station.

In another aspect of the present invention, the content is 7
The container body 46 is filled with the container heated to 0 ° C. or higher, preferably 80 to 90 ° C., and then the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck portion 48 of the container body 46, and the mouth and neck portion 48 is sealed. Thereafter, the container is turned over, and the heated contents are brought into contact with the inner surface of the top wall 4 of the container lid 2. Then, after returning the container to the upright state again, the container is carried into the cleaning / cooling device.

Referring to FIG. 5, the container body 46 is filled with contents heated to 70 ° C. or higher, preferably 80 to 90 ° C., and the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck 48. The loaded container is carried into the horizontal device 88. Then, in such a side-down device 88, the container is turned over and the contents are brought into contact with the inner surface of the top wall 4 of the container lid 2, whereby the container lid 2 is heated to 70 ° C. or more, preferably about 70 to 80 ° C. , Is heated. Then, the container is returned to the upright state. It is important that the time for maintaining the container in the lying state is not less than 20 seconds, for example, about 30 seconds.

The container carried out of the horizontal device 88 is washed and cleaned.
It is carried into the cooling device 90. The cleaning / cooling device 90 may be the same as the cleaning / cooling device 56 described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4 except for the temperature of the cleaning liquid 94 supplied to the cleaning liquid injection tank 92. Cleaning / cooling device 90 shown in FIG.
Since the container lid 2 has already been heated in the side-down device 88, the cleaning solution 94 may be lower in temperature than the cleaning solution 74 in the cleaning / cooling device 56 shown in FIGS.
Is supplied to the cleaning liquid injection tank 92. The temperature of the cleaning liquid 94 supplied to the cleaning liquid injection tank 92 is 45 to 70 ° C.
Degree is fine. If the temperature of the cleaning liquid 94 is excessively high, the taste of the contents may be deteriorated. On the other hand, the cleaning solution 94
If the temperature is too low, a sufficient amount of cleaning liquid cannot pass through the cleaning liquid permeating means 44, and sufficient cleaning cannot be achieved. As in the case of the cleaning / cooling device 56 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the cleaning liquid 94 is poured into the container lid 2 of the container while the container is conveyed below the cleaning liquid jet tank 92, and The outer peripheral surface of the portion 48 and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall 6 are cleaned. 10 minutes or more, especially 13 to 1
Preferably, the cleaning liquid 94 is sprayed for 7 minutes.
While the container is being conveyed beneath the cooling liquid jet tank 96, a cooling liquid 98 is injected into the container to cool the container and its contents. Conveniently, the container is sprayed with the cooling liquid 98 for about 15 minutes.

In still another aspect of the present invention, the contents of the container body 46 are filled at room temperature or cooled to about 5 ° C.
Is attached, and the neck and neck 48 are sealed. Thereafter, a heating step, a cleaning step, and a cooling step are sequentially performed.

FIG. 6 schematically shows a heating / cleaning / cooling apparatus for continuously performing a heating step, a cleaning step, and a cooling step. Heating / cleaning /
The cooling device includes an elongated housing 102. The upstream portion of the housing 102 constitutes a heating housing 104, the intermediate portion constitutes a cleaning housing 106, and the downstream portion constitutes a cooling housing 108.
The downstream end of the heating housing 104 is the cleaning housing 106
, And the downstream end of the cleaning housing 106 is directly connected to the upstream end of the cooling housing 108. A heating housing 104, a cleaning housing 106, and a cooling housing 10
A transport means 110 extending continuously through 8 is provided. Such a conveying means 110 can be constituted by a normal belt conveyor. Heating housing 104
A heating liquid injection tank 112 is provided at the top.
The heating liquid injection tank 112 has a bottom plate 114 which may be rectangular, and the bottom plate 114 is provided with a large number of injection holes 116. The diameter and pitch of the injection holes 116 will be described with reference to FIGS. Bottom plate 70 of cleaning liquid injection tank 66
It may be the same as the injection hole 72 that is perforated. The heating liquid injection tank 112 has a heating liquid 118 which may be heated tap water.
Is supplied by a pump 120 and the heating liquid 118
Is injected downward from the injection hole 116. It is important that the temperature of the heating liquid 118 is 70 ° C. or higher, preferably 70 to 80 ° C. If the temperature of the heating liquid 118 is excessively high, the taste of the contents may be deteriorated. If the temperature of the heating liquid 118 is excessively low, the heating of the container lid 2 becomes insufficient, and poor cleaning occurs. Cleaning housing 106
3 except for the temperature of the cleaning liquid 126 supplied to the cleaning liquid injection tank 124.
The cleaning housing 60 and the cooling housing 62 described with reference to FIG. Cleaning liquid injection tank 12
The temperature of the cleaning liquid 126 supplied to 4 may be about 45 to 70 ° C.

The container in which the contents are filled in the container main body 46 and the container lid 2 is attached to the mouth and neck portion 48 of the container main body 46, as shown by an arrow in FIG. By the transfer means (not shown), a plurality of pieces are successively carried into the upstream end of the transfer means 110 in the heating / washing / cooling apparatus 100 in a state of being arranged in parallel. Then, the heating housing 104,
It is transported at a required speed through the cleaning housing 106 and the cooling housing 108. Container is heating housing 104
During the transfer, the heating liquid 118 injected downward from the injection hole 116 of the heating liquid injection tank 112 is poured into the container lid 2 of the container, whereby the container lid 2 is heated to 70 ° C. or higher, preferably 70 ° C. ~ 80 ° C. 2 containers
It passes under the heated liquid injection tank 112 for a preferable time of about 4 to 4 minutes. In other words, it is preferable that the heating liquid 118 is sprayed onto the container lid 2 for 2 to 4 minutes. If the injection time of the heating liquid 118 is excessively long, the taste of the contents may be deteriorated. On the other hand, heating liquid 1
If the injection time of 18 is excessively short, the heating of the container lid 2 becomes insufficient and poor cleaning occurs. Injected heating liquid 126
Is guided to a drainage channel (not shown) provided at the lower end of the housing 102, and is discharged from the housing 102. While the container is being conveyed through the cleaning housing 106, the cleaning liquid 126 is sprayed onto the container lid 2 of the container, whereby the outer peripheral surface of the mouth-neck portion 48 and the skirt wall 6
Is cleaned. The container passes beneath the cleaning liquid spray tank 124 for a period of at least 10 minutes, preferably about 13 to 17 minutes. The container is a cooling liquid injection tank 1
34, the cooling liquid 13
6, which cools the container and its contents. The container takes about 15 minutes to cool the coolant injection tank 1.
Preferably, it passes below 34. The container discharged from the heating / washing / cooling device 100 is transported to, for example, a packaging station, and is packed in the packaging station.

Referring again to FIG. 2, when opening the mouth and neck portion 48 of the container body 46, the container lid 2 is rotated in the opening rotation direction, that is, counterclockwise as viewed from above in FIG. . Thus, the skirt wall 6 in the container lid 2
Female thread 26 formed in the main portion 10 of the container body 46
Is moved along the external thread 50 formed on the mouth and neck 48 of the container, so that the container lid 2 is raised with rotation. However, the tamper-evident hem 12 of the container lid 2
Since the flap piece 36 formed on the inner peripheral surface is locked to the locking jaw 52 of the mouth and neck 48,
Upward movement is prevented. Therefore, a considerable stress is generated at the bridging portion 14 in the circumferential breaking line 8 formed on the skirt wall 6, and the bridging portion 14 is broken. Thus, the tamper-evident skirt 12 of the skirt wall 6 is separated from the main part 10. Thereafter, the tamper-evident hem portion 12 is left on the mouth and neck portion 46, and the other portion of the container lid 2 is raised with rotation and detached from the mouth and neck portion 46, and the mouth and neck portion 46 is opened. You.

[0032]Example 1  A container lid having the form shown in FIG. 1 was formed. container
The body of the lid is molded from polypropylene and the sealing liner is
Molded from soft polyethylene. Constructs cleaning liquid permeation means
The cut to be made is as described in the above-mentioned 1998 Patent Application No. 15184.
Using a cutting blade as shown in FIGS. 9 to 11 of FIG.
Eight were formed. The total height of the container lid is 20.1mm and the top wall
Outer diameter of the skirt wall at 4.8 mm from the upper surface of the skirt
Was 29.9 mm. Also, the main part of the cutting blade (tip
Excluding the part where the thickness gradually decreases)
0.3 mm, the circumferential length of the cut formed was 2.
It was 0 mm.

Generally referred to as a "500 mm PET bottle"
Polyethylene terephthalate container
Water was charged at room temperature. Then, the container lid was
Immersed in a juice drink that is
Is attached to the container body by hand.
I attached it. Then, using the cleaning experiment equipment,
The following washing experiments were performed. Washing laboratory equipment is 550x
It has a horizontal support of 590 mm in size.
An injection tank is provided above. Injection tank bottom
The plate extends horizontally and the injection holes with a diameter of 2.5 mm are pitched
24 × 27 holes are drilled at 20.0 mm. On the support
Place 10 containers in the tank and set the temperature in the injection tank at 65 ° C.
Water is supplied at a flow rate of 95 l / min for 15 minutes,
It was injected downward from the injection hole of the ink and poured into the container lid. support
The top of the container lid of the container placed on the table and the bottom plate of the injection tank
Was 50 cm in the vertical direction. After spraying the cleaning liquid,
Remove the container lid from the container body and open the mouth and neck of the container body.
It was inspected whether fruit juice had adhered to the outer peripheral surface of. as a result
Was as shown in Table 1 below.Example 2  Make sure that the temperature of clean water supplied to the injection tank is 70 ° C
A cleaning experiment was performed under the same conditions as in Example 1 except for the above. So
Are as shown in Table 1 below.Comparative Example 1  Make sure that the temperature of the water supplied to the injection tank is 30 ° C
A cleaning experiment was performed under the same conditions as in Example 1 except for the above. So
Are as shown in Table 1 below.Comparative Example 2  Make sure that the temperature of the water supplied to the injection tank is 50 ° C
A cleaning experiment was performed under the same conditions as in Example 1 except for the above. So
Are as shown in Table 1 below.Comparative Example 3  Make sure that the temperature of the water supplied to the injection tank is 60 ° C
A cleaning experiment was performed under the same conditions as in Example 1 except for the above. So
Are as shown in Table 1 below.

[0034]

[Table 1] ：: No juice remained on the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck. ：: A small amount of fruit juice remained on part of the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck. Δ: Juice remained on part of the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck. ×: Juice remained on almost the entire outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck.

[0035]Example 3  The container lid body was filled with tap water at 85 ° C., and the container lid was attached.
Later, the container was turned over for only 30 seconds, and the temperature of the cleaning solution
Under the same conditions as in Example 1 except that
A washing experiment was performed. The results are shown in Table 2 below.
Was.Example 4  Example 3 except that the temperature of the cleaning solution was 50 ° C.
A washing experiment was performed under the same conditions. The results are shown in Table 2 below.
It was as follows.Example 5  Example 3 except that the temperature of the cleaning solution was 60 ° C.
A washing experiment was performed under the same conditions. The results are shown in Table 2 below.
It was as follows.Comparative Example 4  Example 3 except that the temperature of the cleaning solution was 20 ° C.
A washing experiment was performed under the same conditions. The results are shown in Table 2 below.
It was as follows.Comparative Example 5  Example 3 except that the temperature of the cleaning solution was 30 ° C.
A washing experiment was performed under the same conditions. The results are shown in Table 2 below.
It was as follows.Comparative Example 6  Example 3 except that the temperature of the cleaning solution was 40 ° C.
A washing experiment was performed under the same conditions. The results are shown in Table 2 below.
It was as follows.

[0036]

[Table 2]

[0037]Example 6  First, 95 liters / min of 73 ° C clean water is injected into the injection tank.
At a flow rate of 3 minutes and then at 50 ° C after a 5 second interruption.
Water was supplied at a flow rate of 95 l / min for 15 minutes.
A cleaning experiment was performed under the same conditions as in Example 1 except for the above. So
Are shown in Table 3 below.Example 7  After the interruption of 5 seconds, the temperature of the water supplied to the injection tank is 60
Washing experiment under the same conditions as in Example 5 except that the temperature is ℃
Was carried out. The results were as shown in Table 3 below.Comparative Example 7  After the interruption of 5 seconds, the temperature of the water supplied to the injection tank becomes 30
Washing experiment under the same conditions as in Example 5 except that the temperature is ℃
Was carried out. The results were as shown in Table 3 below.Comparative Example 8  After the interruption of 5 seconds, the temperature of the clean water supplied to the injection tank becomes 40
Washing experiment under the same conditions as in Example 5 except that the temperature is ℃
Was carried out. The results were as shown in Table 3 below.

[0038]

[Table 3]

[0039]

According to the container cleaning method of the present invention, even when the cleaning liquid permeating means formed on the container lid is constituted by a sufficiently small notch, the cleaning liquid permeating means is sprayed on the container lid. The washing liquid is sufficiently permeated, and sufficient washing of the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container body and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall of the container lid is achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a part of a container lid used in a preferred embodiment of the container cleaning method of the present invention in a sectional view and a part in a side view.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a part of a container lid used in a preferred embodiment of the container cleaning method of the present invention and a mouth and neck portion of a container to which the lid is attached, and a part of a side view.

FIG. 3 is a simplified diagram showing a cleaning / cooling device used in a preferred embodiment of the container cleaning method of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the cleaning / cooling device of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a simplified view showing a horizontal device and a cleaning / cooling device used in another preferred embodiment of the container cleaning method of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a simplified view showing a heating / cleaning / cooling apparatus which is used in a further preferred embodiment of the container cleaning method of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2: Container lid 4: Top wall of container lid 6: Skirt wall of container lid 44: Cleaning liquid permeation means (cut) of container lid 46: Container body 48: Neck and neck of container body 56: Cleaning / cooling device 88: Horizontal Inverting device 90: Cleaning / cooling device 100: Heating / washing / cooling device

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A container body having a mouth-neck portion is filled with contents, and the mouth-neck portion of the container body has a top wall and a cylindrical skirt wall hanging down from a periphery of the top wall, and At least one of the upper part of the skirt wall and the peripheral edge of the top wall is provided with a container lid having a cleaning liquid permeating means formed thereon, and then the cleaning liquid is sprayed onto the container lid to allow the cleaning liquid permeating means to permeate. The container is inserted between the mouth and neck of the container body and the skirt wall of the container lid, and thus the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container body and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall of the container lid are washed. A container cleaning method, wherein a cleaning liquid heated to 65 ° C. or higher is sprayed. 2. The container cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein the contents of the container are filled at room temperature, and the container lid is at room temperature before the cleaning liquid is sprayed. 3. A container body having a mouth-neck portion is filled with contents, and then the mouth-neck portion of the container body has a top wall and a cylindrical skirt wall hanging down from a periphery of the top wall, and At least one of the upper part of the skirt wall and the peripheral edge of the top wall is provided with a container lid having a cleaning liquid permeating means formed thereon, and then the cleaning liquid is sprayed onto the container lid to allow the cleaning liquid permeating means to permeate. The container is inserted between the mouth and neck of the container body and the skirt wall of the container lid, and thus the outer peripheral surface of the mouth and neck of the container body and the inner peripheral surface of the skirt wall of the container lid are washed. In the container washing method, the container lid is heated to 70 ° C. or more, and thereafter, 45 to 7
A container cleaning method, comprising spraying a cleaning liquid heated to 0 ° C. 4. The container cleaning method according to claim 3, wherein the container lid is heated by injecting a heating fluid of 70 ° C. or higher into the container lid. 5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the heating fluid is jetted for two minutes or more.
The container washing method according to the above. 6. The container cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning liquid permeating means comprises a cut formed by applying a cutting blade from an outer surface to cut through the cleaning liquid.